the Lord for that. Second, Timothy chapter number four. We took a little detour with three sermons on how to study your Bible and I think they were pretty well received. They've been viewed probably as high as anything we've had probably in the top five on the sermon audio app. And the Leviathan message is done pretty good. I never thought I'd get into that, but I'm interested to see. Some of them, I go, well, I thought that was a home run, and apparently nobody else wanted to listen to it. And then somebody said, boy, I sure messed up on that one. And maybe somebody wanted to see how bad it was, and they kept playing it. I don't know. But anyhow, we're back on track. The chapter number four will probably take us about three weeks to get through here. And I'm just, three Wednesdays, it doesn't sound, I'm not gonna, y'all making it, y'all laugh like it make it sound such a long time. But anyhow, I hope you don't have to endure the affliction of my sermon tonight, but chapter four, verse number one, we're gonna look at this chapter, and it's broken down in a couple of themes we'll look at, but mainly this is Paul's charge to Timothy. He's charging him, and the purpose of this charge is brought out to me and several points, but we'll look at verse one. He said, I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom. Preach the word, be instant in season and out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. So we'll see the purpose of this charge here is Timothy, he, Timothy, would face judgment. at Christ appearing. He's reminding him of this. Now, I believe one of the reasons why he brought this out is because Paul is in a Roman prison, and he is probably something, we don't know all the details, but most people believe Paul was beheaded, and by tradition, I even read something that said when they cut his head off, it had bounced three times, and every time it bounced, a water spring come out of the ground. I said, well, there's some Froot Loops stuff out there. But anyhow, this is old historical stuff, tradition. I said, man, I'm glad I never was taught some of that because you could run off and start a religion on something like that, you know? But they do believe he was beheaded and that he died there that way. And when you're facing your death and you know it's approaching, that's something that not very many people ever get to experience. And it no doubt changes a person when they are anticipating that. And so the Lord's, the judgment seat of Christ, as the Bible teaches us, in 2 Corinthians 5, 9, I want to read these verses. Wherefore, 2 Corinthians 5, 9, wherefore we labor that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. This is for the believer. You'll be judged by the works you've done for Christ, not the works you've done for Satan. That's where the great white throne judgment judges those works of the unbeliever. So the judgment seat of Christ is a place that everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. As a believer, our service, our failures, our faithfulness, all those things will be taken out. The thought of quicken the dead is not a western title. That word living means quickened or quicken means living. If you ever want to know what that word means just jab something underneath your fingernail and the quick and you'll know real quick that you're living. Amen? It'll hurt. Life, it's living. So all those living and dead will be judged. This is to move and motivate us of our own time of judgment. He's challenging or charging, Timothy concerning his own time that he would face at judgment Because the Bible teaches us this is important and in our life It can help us even purify ourselves Even as he is pure when we are meditating longing looking and loving for his appearing So that kind of is the introduction opens up the thought of the purpose of this charge He starts right off the bat that God's gonna judge everybody at his appearing in his kingdom. And so what he does with that point later in verse two, the part of this charge is that Timothy would focus on his job in all seasons. So he sees a judgment at Christ that's appearing and now we look at his focus on his job at all seasons. Preach the word. That's your job. Preach the word. It's not always easy to preach the word because the word offends many. The Word's not always in season, not to the world, but to the preacher, to the charge, to this young preacher, the charge from the preacher who's ready, he's getting ready to leave out. He challenges him and charges him in these things to be instant in season and also it says out of season. You know, there might be times where Even lost people just eat it up and receive certain things that you say. And you can preach on certain subjects and you won't ruffle any feathers. You won't make anybody mad. But boy, you'll find if you'll preach the whole counsel of the word of God, you're gonna make some people mad once in a while if they're not saving. Even some saved people get mad when you preach the whole Bible. They do. So in season, out of season. My pastor always taught me a portion or a part of this verse. to tell us to always be ready to preach the word at any season. But I believe the greater emphasis is that you need to preach it even when it is out of season. 2022, preaching the word is out of season. I don't anticipate that it's gonna be in season anytime soon, amen? So what should I do? Should I retire? Should I move to a place that's got a better climate of season? No, preach the word. This is charging you, isn't it, preacher? That's exactly what it was meant to do, amen? It's not just for Timothy, it's also for me. And it can be for any of us when it comes to context of proclaiming the word, but especially to a preacher of the word. And we see here, he breaks it down. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. Preach the word, reprove, show them that they are wrong. Now if I tell you you're wrong about something but I cannot show you where the Word of God says that you're wrong, then it'd be hard for me to reprove you. Can't reprove. You know, trying to show you where you need to, where it's wrong in your life. Now some people, still, the Word of God can be as plain as anything and say, I just don't believe it, I'm not receiving it, I'm not going to do that, I'm going to do what I want to do. but still gotta preach the word. Then he says to rebuke, that's to show them how wrong they are wrong, amen? Show them the comparison to a holy God and the plain word of God that is presented. And realizing that you need to rebuke them and it might be that this is a stage where someone has gone on and on and on, often being reproved, but they would not return, they would not repent. God even says that he might judge it upon them and break their neck, and that without remedy. I mean, God's word is a powerful thing, and God wants us to be right, but he also uses his word to reprove us when we are wrong, and he wants us to understand how wrong it really is when we are unholy, unrighteous versus the wickedness that are in this world and we are to walk in light and walk in righteous pathways. Then he uses this thought there about to exhort. to show them how to get right, amen, and the peace in doing so when you get right, and the peace it is to live right and walk right. I need to be exhorted in that, encouraged in that, that I'm not just a sinner, and a sinner, and a sinner, and I got no hope, but there is hope, and there's power in the preaching of the gospel to change people's lives and to bring peace to them. That was his focus on his job in all seasons. The season that they were alive, You say, well it was easier back then preacher. Was it? Where was Paul when he wrote this book? This is the last book that he wrote. This is his final address. I mean, he's in prison, and from all understanding, he would go to execution, and this is it. So, was it better then, he's in prison for preaching the word of God? Preaching the resurrection and preaching the truth? No, it wasn't easier. Now, it is waxing worse, and there are many things that we are dealing with that they may not have had exactly like they are. We have a lot more technology today, so people are a lot more wicked in a lot more ways, it seems, but there was still wickedness abounding in that day. Then he tells them here, with all long-suffering and doctrine. So the word long-suffering gives us a little thought, you just kind of put up with some things. You're gonna have to be long-suffering, patient, preach it, No results, preach it. No results, preach it. No results, preach it, amen? And God may give you some results, but you gotta put up with some things. And then he says, doctrine. Many in the world today do not believe that doctrine matters. They'll even put that on their website, they sell it in their solicitations as they're trying to sell their church to the world, that they don't push doctrine. And the simple definition is that they don't teach teaching. They don't teach you anything. and you can get into some of them that are better than others, no doubt, but doctrine is important. It's the fundamental truths that our faith is standing on, and that's the only way I can contend for the faith, if it's standing on some pillars of truth. Teaching of the truth, do it with patience, put up with it, long-suffering. Then he says in verse three, Timothy he would face a jaded audience now. This is alliterated. And yes, I'll use the letter J and that was a challenge I have to say But I tried He faced a jaded audience look at verse 3 for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine You preach it, it's not that just they don't understand it, or they're confused by it, they will not endure it. You're not gonna put that yoke of bondage upon me. I'm not talking about preaching the law, I'm just talking about preaching the word of God. There are certain things that, oh, I'm not gonna follow that or do that, or no, you can't come out and say, dare say that there's more than, there's only one way to heaven. You ever watch some of these preachers get on these talk shows, and they try to, the host, wants them to plainly say it. And they ask for it. Is Jesus the only way? They know that's a statement, that's a thing. And the preacher, he hauls around, well that's not for me to say. Preach the word, who's supposed to say it? Lord, I'm about to lose all my outline out here, amen. Joel Osteen, he drove me crazy one time. He was interviewed by Larry King. And he hauled around, and that's why the world loves that. No doctrine. No, I would not get invited back. I wouldn't get invited at all. But if I had a chance to tell this world, Larry, it's just like this. The Bible says that Jesus said that he was the way, the truth, and the life, and no man cometh unto the Father but by me. Jesus said that. He had his opportunity, and he didn't say it. Afraid to offend. And see, it gives us the idea of a time we're living in, an apostolic age, where people will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lust. As I mentioned to you, he would face a jaded audience, a hard-hearted, hard-to-deal-with audience, who the Bible says, they got lust that they want to heap to themselves teachers. having itching ears. They would reject the truth and receive the false. They would rather receive the fake, the fluff, and the puff, but they don't want sound doctrine. Now there are a few rarities of that around the area where there are some churches that preach the sound doctrine and they grow, they're overflowing, doing well. But most of them, if you do that, you cycle out people. Some people cycle in and out. You finally get settled down to some that will endure. but it's not a day where that's gonna be an easy job for Timothy. It's not a day, an easy job for us today, those who reject the truth. You know, that word turn, we get our thought of repentance. Instead of repenting and turning from sin to God, they are turning from God. They want the false doctrine. They want you to tickle their ears, itch their ears. They want you to scratch their back, so to speak. They want you to comfort them. So he's gonna face that type of audience. And then we see in verse number five, he would face his job's afflictions. He says, watch thou in all things, endure afflictions. If Paul knew what it was to go through afflictions, we do not know if Timothy ever went to prison. I don't know of it, maybe you've studied it. I haven't found a reference. I don't know of his history like I know Paul's history. Paul knew afflictions. He has experienced them and he tells him to watch, pay attention, the same understanding of other messages even like Peter had preached. Be sober, keep your eyes open, be alert. And then he goes on to say, endure afflictions. You've got to persevere. You're going to have to persevere. Stay on course. What I thought when that word persevere came to my mind, it took me a while to autocorrect about make a man backslide. Between preserve and persevere, and my hillbilly-ness, it was hard to get that together. But when I finally found, I knew what I wanted, but I wanted to say I need a definition that I can be comfortable with explaining a little bit easier. and one of the thoughts was just stay on course, and I went, man, what a blessing, because he's gonna talk about the course that he stayed on his whole life since he got saved, and he's gonna charge Timothy to stay on course. He's gonna tell him here to watch in all things, endure afflictions, and then he sees in that thought there, I thought about this, keep your eyes on the road, amen, and stay in that seat even when you hit a bump. He's gonna hit some bumps. And that's what he told him. And he tells him to endure all that. And then we see a point here where he can find joy in the afflictions. He can find joy, verse five. How can you find joy? Well, it says, do the work of an evangelist. Make full proof of thy ministry. Preaching the gospel. There ain't nothing better than that. There's some things in here I don't enjoy preaching, I'm gonna tell you. I don't. There's something, I'm gonna lay something on my heart. Man, Lord, I don't wanna preach that. But then he tells me to preach the word. but preaching the gospel and the peace that passes all understanding and how God can take an old sinner like you and I and change their life and pull them out of the muck and mire of sin, set their feet on a solid rock. I mean, who couldn't enjoy preaching the word, preaching the gospel, the gospel message? Do the work of an evangelist and spread that gospel message and seeing people saved. Paul did it with three full, thorough missionary journeys and then the fourth when he went to Rome. Timothy traveled many times with him and with others. I believe he's trying to tell them you can find joy in all that affliction. Do that work of an evangelist. Preach that death, that burial and resurrection. Easter Sunday comes so easy. I know what I'm gonna preach normally. I'm gonna preach on the resurrection. I mean, that's one of them days, no matter how dumb you are, you don't know what to preach, I think you should be able to figure that one out, amen? You can preach the resurrection any other day, but why would you jump over it just for your own pride and say, well, we always, no, preach the word, preach that gospel message. Preach the resurrection. There'll be those who might have never heard it, or there'll be those that might have finally heard it the right way the first time and could be saved. burial and resurrection and Paul many times stirred the pot even when the Pharisees and Sadducees were in the same audience he knew the Sadducees didn't believe in the resurrection so he went towards the Pharisees and stirred the pot and got them fighting against each other instead of all of them against him. I couldn't think of anything more joyful than to do than to preach something like that and watch them fight over it, amen, because they about to kill me. I'm going to preach the resurrection. I can preach. It's not false. It's not false doctrine. It's real. Sinners have a savior, amen. You can repent. Then there's redemption. He buys us out of the slave market. We receive grace, mercy, the peace of God. The Bible even says we end up with eternal. John 3, 16, we have everlasting life. The work of an evangelist there, boy, that ought to bring some joy in the midst of the hardship. And I promise you this, if that wasn't a truth, there would be no preachers still preaching. You couldn't endure the affliction. You couldn't just keep going and going and going and never see the truth open anybody's heart and eyes, never see any conversion, never see anybody saved, never get baptized, never see any fruits in people's lives. If you never saw it, it just grinds you to powder. You couldn't survive it. But God brings in that joy, even though you might go through afflictions. Every place and preacher no doubt goes through winter times and problems, but I tell you, all that stuff washes away when you end up in that baptismal pool. He had about seven, eight, nine that said they got saved during that year. There's no greater joy than to watch people walk in truth. Then I look at the preparation of this charge. Well, he says, verse five, make full proof of our ministry. and everything girding up, everything testing what you know it works, amen? As you preach and teach and learn, you learn what doesn't work and you learn what does not. What am I saying? You learn what does work and you learn what doesn't work. And a young man, Timothy might have been, I don't know exactly how old he was, but I remember when I first started preaching, it's a very dangerous thing, even the Bible warns against that place of being a novice. Where you think you're not a novice, you're not a newbie, you're not a greenhorn, you're not a wet behind the ears, but you think you know everything. I remember when I went to Bible college, man, I just thought, I thought I knew so much. And I did pretty good in Bible college, but it was after college when I went to go pastor, I realized I didn't know nothing. Those books didn't teach you how to deal with nothing about people. It's all exegesical and exhortation and hermeneutics and homiletics. And some of you are going, what are you talking about? I know, right? Tell that to the woman screaming in the parking lot. fussing at you because you hurt their feelings during the service, and didn't even do nothing about preaching, but you just, I ain't got time to go there, but anyhow. Yeah, I know you are, I know you've been there. Make full proof of that ministry, amen? And there's some things that you learn that our foundations keep building upon them, keep building upon them. Find out what counsel you have around you through the spirit of God, through the scriptures of the word of God, and those saved saints that God puts into your life. And not only that, that preparation of the charge, Timothy, I'm gonna write this down while I'm thinking about this. I'm gonna do this some other day, amen? Paul was ready. Timothy's not ready. He's got a lot of preparation to do. Paul's passing the torch, so to speak, amen? Paul says in verse six, I am now ready to be offered. Paul knew he was gonna die. Maybe not know exactly how he was gonna die, Brother Jeremy, but he knew he was getting ready to take his last breath. He was gonna open his eyes in heaven. Absent from the body, present with the Lord, came from him. Do you not think he was thinking in his mind already? I mean, he had preached it, proclaimed it, and taught it. This was his last address. So he already had quoted that verse somewhere. He had already recorded it. And in his mind, getting ready to be absent from this body and present with you, Lord, when I open, when I'm gone, that next second, I'll be in glory. I believe he believed that with all his heart. He said, I am now ready, now ready to be offered. Romans eight, no, excuse me, Romans 12, one and two, he talked about that living sacrifice. Now it's ended, it's completed, and now he's ready to be offered. He's ready, as 2 Timothy 1, 12 talks about. All that he has committed unto him against that day, that day is here. It's gonna come, he's gonna maybe put his head on the chopping block, maybe it'll be like a guillotine kind of created thing, or maybe it'll just be a sword, but he's gonna have that head chopped off as tradition, and some history tells us, there's early Catholic church history, Clement, one of those first popes, that said that that's how he died. I don't discount his history, but I wouldn't accept his doctrine too much. But he's prepared, he's ready. We don't know how we're gonna die, and let's assume that he did die that way, but I don't know how I'm going to die, but I still need to receive the charge in my life that I need to, I wanna be ready like Paul was ready. At any moment, be ready. And we've heard prayer requests tonight. It's evident that 17 years all the way to the 90s, anywhere in between, we could be called out of this world. Are you ready? The only way to be ready is to be saved. And after you get saved, amen, you start growing and you want to start seeking the Lord's face and grow in grace and knowledge. And then when you start doing that, he wants you to start serving him, walking for him. And after that life, Paul lived. No, he was not perfect, but he was ready. Offer up. He said, my departure is at hand. Somebody called it flight 316, getting ready to leave. Amen. He was ready. Wanted Paul to be ready. Paul's faith and journey is almost over. I mean, he's not steps getting slow. His steps are shackled. He can't go on. He's done. His course is completed. And he says, I have fought a good fight. I use this thought. The fight and the journey awarded a good gift, a good fight that's worth fighting good or fighting well. Amen? It's a good fight. It's a good race to be in. I've never regretted getting saved. I've never really met anybody in their right mind who ever got saved that regretted it either. He said, would you tell them they were crazy if they said that? Maybe, probably. But everybody I've met that I know was in the right mind and I know that there was a change in their life. Most of them, Sister Mori, Sister Virginia and Brother Bobby I guess, Brother Wade as well, some of these 79, 80 range. Most of them, I've watched them, it gets sweeter as the journey goes. They're getting closer to home and they know they're doing the same thing. I'm ready, I'm ready to go, I'm ready to be there, I'm ready to depart. He's charging Timothy. I've fought a good fight, but I see in that it was a good fight to fight. He fought it well, much better than I have fought my fight to this point. But listen, I can't preach that good, but you sure can't enjoy it no more than I do. and you might fight a better fight than I have fought, but you can't try. I'm trying. I miss many times, but I'm trying. I don't want to shadow box all the time, but I try to take a swing at it. Paul spoke here, and he tells him, I've finished my course, and you need to stay on course. I've kept the faith, and he did. He really did. There's something to really be valued in someone who finished well. A lot of people start. I started Bible college with some guys who everybody thought that they were going to be the superstars. Like we had superstars in Easley, but anyhow, we know I'm traumatized. Somebody get up and preach, and they're just expounding, and they're like, man, how did they find that stuff in there? I ain't never seen that before. We're all there just amazed and blown away. First one's out. Not even in church. So finishing is so much more important than just starting. And finishing well, and Paul finished it, and he boldly declared, I fought a good fight, I finished my course, I have kept the faith. So that fight and that journey awarded a good gift. He expected a crown. And that crown would come to him for looking for the appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom he would not even get to do. He won't even be here to see him return, but he still expected that crown. Why? Because he was in that fight, that course, that journey, he loved and was looking and longing for his appearing. Looking for it. even though he didn't get to live. I'm glad that crown's there. I might die before the night's over, but I can still get that crown because I love his appearing. That's what it says, doesn't it? Henceforth there is laid up for me. Personally, he expected this. He expected to depart, but he also expected an arrival. And when he got there, he figured there'd be a time he'd get that crown. He longed for it, looked for it. He loved his appearing. And the Bible says here in verse number eight, there is laid up for me, which means to me, he expected it, already had his name on it. It was in the slot, amen. It's laid up. I saw it in one all I got to do is claim it go get it No wonder he was so ready to die he was I don't mean I don't know I know this is read between the line Can you imagine Paul get down there you can believe what you want to believe? You probably will anyway, so You're mad and getting ready to go down there And he said Lord wouldn't it be amazing if you just rapture us all out of here right now before they cut my head off What a blessing that would be That man was swiping, that body would be gone. Where'd he go? I don't know that he thought that. But I would have probably thought that, unless I was just screaming and crying and scared. But what a way to go. I want to go. I want to serve and live. And I want to depart. I want to be ready like Paul was. He says here in verse 8, I'm getting ready to close out, which the Lord, the righteous judge. He will righteously judge everything we've done in our life. And the Bible says he's going to shout, he says, that Jesus personally shall give me at that day. And I don't think it's because Paul was better than you and I. I believe this is generically telling us this is what Paul expects us to receive. that the Lord's gonna give these crowns out to all of us. We'll all receive it if we love his appearing, because he said, not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. A lot of people got their mind on the Lord coming back right now. The world's talking more about Armageddon and World War III than the church is. They're talking about China and Russia's becoming close buddies. North Korea, who knows what they're liable to do. That guy's crazy over there. The Bible says, 1 John 3, two, beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him. And the Bible says, for we shall see him as he is. That scripture makes me love his appearing. I long for it, I'm looking for it. Then verse three says, and every man that hath this hope in him purifies himself, even as he is pure. Looking and longing and having a love for his appearing will purify your life. You won't go so long without getting that sin under the blood. The Lord's coming back. I need to get my heart right. I don't need to keep walking this way. Or even this, it may deter you around some sin that you, no, I can't do this, I can't do that. I don't want to have committed that sin. The Lord could come back any second. I don't want to be called in that act. Lord, I step back from that. And then you put that thought into captivity and you give it over to the Lord Jesus Christ, amen? And it purifies you even as he is pure, as the scripture says. So we look at that thought of the preparation of this charge. Faith and journey. Paul's almost over. The fight and journey was awarded. Think about how this affected Timothy. Because this is his man. He loved Paul. And Paul loved him like a son. And he's leaving out, and many, many others were going to be affected by Paul's departure. And this is his last words that he's recording for us. Now, next Wednesday night, we'll look at Paul's final jots and what I write, appeal. Amen. I alliterated the hound out of this one. It might be my last chance. You never know. The Lord might come back. I might not get to study no more. I might not get to preach no more. I might not get to study it and put it together. Amen. But anyhow, we'll look at Paul's final jots and appeal. There's little things he'll bring out here. He'll ask for certain things to be brought to him. He's going to reference some people we've never heard before ever again in the scriptures. He'll reference their names, and we'll look at some of those things, and if the Lord lets us, we might get done next week, but I went ahead and told you it might take three, and I knew it wouldn't get done tonight, so. Technically, we got through verse eight. Amen. Not too bad. Let's go, Lord, in prayer. Father, thank you for your word, Lord, and how it is alive to us still. May I never lose my passion and hunger for it. Forgive me, Lord, many times I have. But God, I thank you, Lord, that this admonition is given, this charge is given here. Lord, help us, Lord, to be ready. Lord, let us live our lives like Paul was living that good fight that he fought well and fought in a good way. finish his course. Lord, we all have a course. May we finish it. May we run that race with patience and grace. May we glorify you in our life as we serve you. And what we believe is the last days. This was Paul's last day or two. Last days for him. Lord, the last days for us, we believe might be right around the corner where the signs of the times are. But Lord, help us, God, to just keep on running that race Lord, help us, God, to keep enduring the afflictions and keep on being long-suffering and keep on preaching and keep on promoting the gospel until you come. In Jesus' name, amen. Little Jim, if you don't mind, can you cut that live feed off?