Thank you, Dr. Bargus. Appreciate the opportunity to be able to be with you all. And thank you, Dr. Montoya, for your years of faithful ministry. I don't want to tell you this, but you joined the IFCA right after I was born. But I love and appreciate Dr. Montoya. I think one of my first conventions I came to, I met him, and the thing I appreciate, one of the things, is that he always makes you feel at home and welcome, no matter if you just joined last week, or if you've been a member as long as he has, and that's a special treat, and I just appreciate his ministry and his labors there for the cause of Christ. Well, it's certainly a privilege to be able to speak at the National Convention. It's certainly always a risky proposition for the executive director to give the mic to someone and hope that at the end of the evening they propelled the fellowship forward and not backward, and that is certainly my goal tonight, especially with a topic like what we have this week. I was thinking as I was preparing for this message, I remembered a time when I was compelled to defend something doctrinally, and that was when I was a junior in college. It's important to know as the lead in to this story that at the particular time of this story, I was actually really sick with a sinus infection. And so I had found some Benadryl in my roommate's drawer and not realizing that that would make me sleepy, I took two pills and I went off to my hour and a half long doctrines class. The teacher that morning was focused on the doctrine of the virgin birth. And as I sat there, literally half out of it, I could not escape the fact that he was repeatedly saying the phrase, virgin birth, over and over and over. To the point that it was like fingernails on a chalkboard. So finally, I raised my hand, and you need to know that it was rare that I ever asked a question in class. It just wasn't something that I did, but nonetheless, if you're gonna start a trend, you should do it while you are drugged on Benadryl. And so I said, Dr. Schneider, what is so important about the virgin birth? Aren't we all born virgins? The look on his face and his expressive response of, what, made me recoil, wondering how I got such a visceral response from him. My wife, Kimberly, who I was dating at the time, was sitting next to me, she elbowed me and she said, shut up. Just shut up. And I looked at her with my hands still raised in the air and I said, no, this, this is very important. And so I repeated the question. Dr. Snyder, what is so important about the virgin birth? Aren't we all born virgins? He pulled himself together, he knocked on the desk and he said, you must be talking about cows, let's move on. And I was so confused, because nowhere had I thought about cows. Right now, Richard has leaned over to Wendy and said, what have I done? Well, tonight I've been asked to address the matter of defending Orthodox doctrine, and I'm hoping that this is not a repeat of that fateful day, my junior year as a Bible major at Bob Jones University. Before we begin, let's have a word of prayer. Father, we are so thankful to you for the fact that in our utter humanity and depravity, you loved us, you sent your son to die for us. Father, I pray that as we examine this topic this evening of defending Orthodox doctrine, Give us clarity of thought, give us clarity of mind. Father, I pray that you would help us to see the urgent need that lies before us. Father, thank you for the fact that you are so good to us and you are so faithful to us. We pray these things in your son's name, amen. In the now classic Christmas movie, Elf, A little baby at an orphanage crawls into Santa's bag of gifts and is unexpectedly taken back to the North Pole. The elves at the North Pole are shocked to see the baby come crawling out of Santa's bag, and not knowing how to respond, they do what only seems logical and try to accommodate this little human. They name him Buddy. They make Buddy believe that he is one of them, and they try hard to cover the fact that he is different. Despite his inability to perform normal elf jobs and being much larger than all the other elves, they continue to insist that he is, in fact, one of them. Well, tonight, I want to talk a little bit about Buddy. But before we do, we need to examine some history. I grew up in a system of what many outsiders would refer to as cultural fundamentalism, although we just refer to it as fundamentalism. In fact, for me, going to Bob Jones University in 1995 as a freshman was liberating. I actually had more freedom at Bob Jones than I did in the church I grew up in. I grew up in a system that worshiped King James more than King Jesus, that measured the length of girls' skirts and men's hair more than our growth in Christ's likeness, was more concerned with what we did for Christ rather than what Christ had done for us. that told the younger guys to shut up, get in line, salute, and honor the hoary head. They consistently presented God's wrath as his primary attribute. God was thought of like a circus master and Christians were thought of like circus monkeys. You never knew if you were going to be beat or if you were going to get a banana. You hoped for the proverbial banana of God's blessings, but you knew deep down that you didn't deserve it, and therefore you prepared yourself for the beating from God who ultimately was just out to get you. It gave us a regular diet of topical preaching that was designed to manipulate emotions, induce fear, and elicit unsustainable commitments. This form of cultural fundamentalism was the original cancel culture. If you didn't do what you were supposed to, you were summarily dismissed. This led to false conversions, disillusionment, legalism, anger, bitterness, and the list goes on. And now today we reap the consequences of countless thousands of people who grew up in that system, who each year are quitting church, firing God, and ultimately deconstructing. For those of us who grew up in that system, here is the reality that we faced. Long before the docu-series, Shiny Happy People, we had Bill Gothard telling our sisters that they couldn't wear pants and that a woman's place was to only be in the home and in quiet submission and obedience to her husband. We had Jack Hiles was telling us that 1 Peter 1, verse 23, referring to the imperishable seed was a reference to the King James Version. He told us that you couldn't get saved from another version other than the King James. Meanwhile, from 1978 to 2022, the FBFI, or Fundamental Baptist Fellowship, now Foundations Baptist Fellowship, passed roughly 425 resolutions. including resolutions against Billy Graham, Sword of the Lord, ACE, Sunday School, as in all fundamentalists must have Sunday School, Promise Keepers, T4G, Success, John Piper, John MacArthur, and Awana. However, what is even more telling is that they consistently resolve themselves against three particular things. the Southern Baptist Convention 13 times, Jerry Falwell and pseudo-fundamentalism 14 times, and music and or worship 15 times, including this resolution from 1997, which states this, and I quote, the FBF rejects the notion that music is not a matter of separation. Clearly, we would separate from a pastor or a church that used rock music either to attract a crowd or, God forbid, in worship. Therefore, we recognize that it is a separation issue. The encroachment of CCM or contemporary Christian music as a musical genre has been ignored too long. Fundamentalists should be able to agree that we must be committed to godly Christ-honoring music. With sufficient prayerful discussion with fundamentalist musicians and necessary study of the subject by our preachers, we will be able to move toward a consensus of what is meant by Christ honoring music in practice. We call for fundamentalists to cease defending tastes in music as a matter of preference. We assert that those who boast of their balance and objectivity while rejecting the teaching of biblical principles concerning music are compromising the means whereby this issue can be resolved. Neither tradition nor taste is the issue." End quote. And unfortunately, as we have seen played out so many times in churches, organizations, and even universities. Some of those who hold on to this kind of legalism act just like an abusive husband who holds their wife hostage and are even willing to kill her rather than let her go free from their hands. Take, for instance, this quote from the blog, In Defense of the Gospel, where the blogger writes this on November 2nd, 2022, quote, so I tell you frankly and with a heavy heart, it better serves the cause of Christ that Bob Jones University be closed down rather than to continue the course that Steve Pettit and his administration has set it on, end quote. After Steve Pettit resigned on March 30, 2023, the blogger followed up with this, quote, With Pettit's departure, we trust that his agenda to erase the university's fundamentalist, separatist legacy is coming to a close. We hope and pray that the university can be recovered from the egregious policies, programs, fine arts, and doctrinal shift he engineered and allowed for, end quote. We'd rather see the university close entirely than to be let go from what we want in our cultural fundamentalism. Let me be absolutely clear. What I've just described here is not fundamentalism. This is at best cult-like, and this is an abomination to the work of Christ. See, cultural fundamentalism that I grew up in is easy to be part of. You simply follow these legalistic commands and you don't have to think about your heart's work and relationship with God that healthy Christianity entails. So we address the issue tonight of reclaiming biblical fundamentalism, in particular the fact that this means we defend orthodox doctrine. But before we go further, we must clarify two things. We must first clarify what is biblical fundamentalism, and secondly, we must clarify what it means to defend orthodox doctrine. You see, there can only be one fundamentalism. There cannot be both cultural fundamentalism and biblical fundamentalism as legitimate options. As Dr. Kevin Bowder proclaims and articulates in his blog, in the nick of time, dated February 3rd, 2023, he says this, quote, fundamentalists consider affirmation of the true gospel to be essential to recognition as a Christian. Since the fundamentals are essential to the gospel, they are also essential to Christian recognition. Anyone who denies a fundamental doctrine cannot rightly be recognized as a Christian. Furthermore, fundamentalists believe that extending Christian fellowship to people who must not be recognized as Christian is a hypocritical act that usurps the authority of Christ. To put it in other terms, the differentia of fundamentalism is separatism." This is true from what Dr. Bauder says, but we need to give a caveat explanation to the application which most cultural fundamentalists give to Bauder's statement. With many cultural fundamentalists, their approach is the priority of separation and the necessary biblical evil of unity. So they separate at all costs and hope for unity at the end of the day. However, this is not what Bauder is teaching, nor is it what the Bible teaches in John chapter 17, verse 21, where Christ asks that we be one just like he and the Father are one. So the proper relationship between separation and unity is that unity is the priority. And when we can no longer be unified, then we have to separate. So instead of looking at how quickly and over what trivial matters we can separate and hope for unity later, we seek to be unified as long as possible on doctrine. And then when we can't, we are grieved to have to separate. The system I grew up in said, how quickly and over what trivial matters can we separate? So let's establish this fact. If Bauder is correct that fundamentalists are concerned with gospel-centered separation, which is separation from liberal theology, and they are equally concerned with the unity of the body, then we have to do something with those groups who have added requirements to the practice of the gospel-oriented separation and seek to separate as soon as possible. How do we deal with those groups who seek to separate as quickly as possible and over trivial matters? In other words, separation is biblical, but not all separation is created equal. If we are talking about the fact that a fundamentalist defends orthodox doctrine, and orthodoxy is the criteria for our separation, we have to ask this question. What do we do with those groups who have made such things as dress standards, music styles, translations, and other such matters a test of fellowship? How do we respond to them? What do we do with groups that make statements like what appeared on page 14 of the January-February 2004 Frontline magazine, where the author of the article poses this question to a group of pastors, quote, where are the young fundamentalists, end quote. And to that observation, the author makes this statement, and I quote, Following up that question of where are the young fundamentalists, I related that ever since graduating from seminary in 1998, I have heard too many stories about fellow classmates or fellow alumni who have left the fold of fundamentalism. Instead, they have become seeker-sensitive, or they have embraced contemporary Christian music, or they have joined liberal, Presbyterian, Lutheran, or even Episcopal churches. What went wrong? What caused their aberration of belief and practice?" Did you catch that? Being seeker-sensitive, using contemporary Christian music, not specific to doctrine, but to style, and joining a liberal denomination all bear the same weight. And not just that, it is described as, quote, an aberration of belief and practice. So we have taken a musical style, a musical preference, and we have elevated it to the same level as someone who joins a liberal, Episcopal, Presbyterian, or Lutheran denomination. Put into English, if you do any of these three things that the author lists, not only are you not a fundamentalist, you are on the road to apostasy or have already landed in apostasy. So to the question of what do we do with these people, the answer is this. Since matters of dress, music styles, translations, et cetera, are not gospel-centered issues, Those who add these to the mix of separation issues are not biblical fundamentalists. Let me repeat that. Since matters of dress, music styles, translations, et cetera, are not gospel-centered issues. They are not orthodoxy. Those who add these to the mix of separation issues are not biblical fundamentalists. They fall outside of the concept of biblical fundamentalism. They can and should be called legalistic, but they cannot be called fundamentalists. Secondly, now that we have clarified what is biblical fundamentalism, we must examine the idea of what it means to defend orthodox doctrine. If we are reclaiming biblical fundamentalism and defending orthodox doctrine is one of the ways that we do that, then we need to first define orthodox doctrine and then we need to assess whether or not we have done a good job of defending it. So let's define orthodox doctrine. Orthodox doctrine are those doctrines that are encapsulated in the four ecumenical creeds and five solas. At its core, orthodox doctrine are the doctrines that uphold the veracity of the gospel and the scriptures. This is what led J. Gresham Machen to state this, indifferentism about doctrine makes no heroes of the faith. See, Machen understood that if we are going to stand and defend Orthodox doctrine, it would require courage, confidence, and commitment. We also know that Orthodoxy can puff up, and it can make us lose sight of the reality of what the focal point of Orthodoxy really is, which is Christ. This is why Martin Lloyd-Jones stated this, quote, I will not glory even in my orthodoxy, for even that can be a snare if I make a god of it. Let us rejoice in him in all his fullness and in him alone, end quote. Charles Spurgeon, in trying to show the relationship between orthodoxy and orthopraxy, stated this, quote, be dogmatically true, obstinately holy, immovably honest, desperately kind, fixedly right, end quote. Orthodox doctrine is what we stand for, we fight for, we defend, and we hold in subservience with grace to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Now that we've defined orthodox doctrine, we have to ask this question. Do we have a problem in the IFCA, which is our specific context, with understanding what orthodox doctrine is? The answer is no. Why? Our entire fellowship is held together not by a commonality of a philosophy of ministry, as is the case with other groups. Rather, our entire organization is bound together solely by doctrine. Now we can make the argument that we as a fellowship hold things to a stricter degree than others who are fundamentalists by terms of orthodox doctrine. In other words, there's an argument to be made that as a fellowship, we are tighter in our doctrinal adherence than what is required of a fundamentalist. To be sure, the IFCA does not have a corner market on fundamentalism. We're not the only ones. In other words, we are certainly not the marquee standard. For clarity, we need to mention that there are boundaries that are drawn by fellowships. That's what makes them fellowships. So there are differences between, say, the GARB and the IFCA or the SVC or the Venture Church Network, the former CBA. However, when push comes to shove, we will all agree on what Orthodox doctrine is, and we will seek to work as best as possible to defend that together with each other. The problem comes when one fellowship, like was mentioned above, believes that they have the corner market on what a fundamentalist is and demands that all other fundamentalists bow to them. The problem then with some biblical fundamentalists, including even some of us in the IFCA, is not a mission issue. It is an execution issue. We know what the mission is. In this case, the mission is to defend orthodox doctrine. The issue is not that we do not know what orthodox doctrine is. We would all affirm that orthodox doctrine includes such things as the inspiration of the Bible, the creation of man by the direct act of God, the incarnation and the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, Christ's vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by shedding his blood on the cross, the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit, the return of Christ to rule and reign. So the issue is not a mission issue. The issue we have is an execution issue. We have failed to execute the mission of defending Orthodox doctrine and preparing others to defend Orthodox doctrine. How have we done that? We have failed to train the current and next generations in defending Orthodox doctrines. You see, it's not enough that we talk about Orthodox doctrine in our youth ministries or in our small groups or in our church service and hope that that somehow trickles its way down to our congregants. We must take the next steps to help men and women of all generations to learn to defend Orthodox doctrine. So let me illustrate it this way. In 1939, when World War II broke out, the United States had the 19th largest army in the world behind Romania. No offense to Romania, but that's not good. There were just 335,000 personnel, service personnel in the U.S. military. Compare that to both Japan, which had 850,000 service personnel in their military, and Germany, which had 3.1 million personnel in its military. What can we deduce about America in 1939? Oh, they knew the mission. protect and defend America and her allies, but they had up to that point in 1939 prepared to not only prepare for the mission, but they were at that point unable to execute the mission. We all know what transpired in the next seven years as the world beheld the arsenal of democracy at work. There are too many pastors who have sabbed their conscience by incorporating Orthodox doctrine from the pulpit on Sundays and thinking to themselves that they have completed the task. Don't misunderstand, that's a great thing to do. We should all be striving to do that. But in reality, they have only partially done what is necessary. Many have not prepared their people for the mission they have, and they have not equipped their people to execute the mission. Let me explain this further. When I did my dissertation in 2015, I conducted a survey of a number of churches on the selection of their elders. One of the questions that I asked was this, do you require any form of testing and doctrine for prospective elders? Of the 70 churches of different ecclesiastical affiliations that responded, approximately one third of them were IFCA churches. Out of the 70 churches, only two responded that they did require doctrinal testing of their prospective elders. The vast majority responded by saying that as long as an elder agreed to the church's doctrinal statement, that was all the doctrinal testing that they would require. This is a clear violation of Titus chapter 1 verse 9, which states that an elder must know God's word, be able to teach God's word, and defend God's word. If many in our own fellowship don't even require doctrinal testing of their own elders to be able to defend God's word, Orthodox doctrine, then it definitely stands to reason that the average congregant in the seats is not only not being equipped to defend Orthodox doctrine, they actually cannot defend Orthodox doctrine. Brothers and sisters, it is not 1939 It is 2023, and biblical fundamentalism figuratively ranks 19th in preparedness for the mission that God has called us to. It is no longer time for an arsenal of democracy, rather it is time for an arsenal of orthodoxy campaign. So fundamentalists defend orthodox doctrine by teaching and equipping and preparing believers of all ages and all genders to defend orthodox doctrine. We die on the hills of orthodox doctrine. That is what we defend and fight for. We do this by having intentional times of teaching on doctrine outside of the Sunday services. In other words, we spend time with our men and our women engaging them in small groups or Bible studies or other intentional activities to engage them in the teaching and the instruction and the defense of Orthodox doctrine. And while I'm making half of the world upset by what I've already said, let me add this as well. If you see only men as needing to be taught and equipped and challenged to defend Orthodox doctrine, you are not only disenfranchising the women of your church, but you are missing the fact that church history would inform us that women are just as influential, if not more influential, than men in teaching and training the next generation for the cause of Christ. For further clarity, if we were to ask how many of you were taught doctrine by a woman from the time you were born until you were 18 years old, the vast majority of you would acknowledge that fact. So if we aren't doing a great job of providing specific times of training our men in Orthodox doctrine, then we can be assured of this, we are not providing opportunities for our women in our churches. and herein lies the issue, and thus confirms the theory that we need to be challenged in this area. We have neglected to train men in Orthodox doctrine, but sadly, we have entirely forgotten the women. So biblical fundamentalism, as defined above, defend Orthodox doctrine. This is our premise. So how do we do that? Again, we know what the mission is, but we need to actually do it, the execution of the mission. What is at play that would keep us from this? Why do we not do this? What do we need to have in place in order to do that? And that's what Paul is going to address in 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 through 18. So I invite you to turn there, 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 through 18. Paul in his address to Timothy here in this passage is going to highlight for Timothy three imperative commands for Timothy. 2 Timothy 1, verse eight says this. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner. but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher. This is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phrygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. But when he arrived in Rome, he searched for me earnestly and found me. May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day, and you well know all of the services he rendered at Ephesus. Here is the Apostle Paul addressing his young protege, Timothy, to give him, Timothy, here's the instructions. Timothy, here's what you're going to face. Timothy, here's the issues that are presented before you. And Timothy, here are three commands I am giving you, three imperative statements that are found within this particular text of Scripture between verses eight through 14. So we look first of all tonight in order to defend Orthodox doctrine, we must first of all be courageous. Look at verses 8 through 12. as Timothy is unfolding here for us. Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony you are about our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began. and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Paul begins in this particular text in verse eight by reminding Timothy, therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord. But instead, Timothy, of being ashamed, I want you to share in suffering for the gospel. The imperative command here is the word share. It's the Greek word which means to share the same suffering as others, as opposed to being shamed. So Paul lays these two thoughts side by side and says, Timothy, I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. In other words, Timothy, I am not ashamed of orthodox doctrine. Remember, he told the church at Rome that. In Romans 1, verse 16, Paul said, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Why? Because it is the power of God unto salvation. So here he articulates that again. Timothy, just like you have seen in me, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, in verse eight, nor of me, his prisoner. Timothy, do not be ashamed, but instead of being ashamed, Timothy, I am pleading with you to share together, be a partaker together in suffering for the gospel. That's why Paul is gonna remind Timothy in the next chapter in verse three and four where he says this, share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. The issue we face in Christianity today is the same issue that Paul faced in his day. We have men and women, brothers and sisters, soldiers of Christ, who have entangled themselves in the affairs of the civilian. In this case, believers have entangled themselves in the affairs of the world, and they are absolutely impotent to accomplish anything for Christ, let alone share in the suffering for Christ. And this is what Paul is admonishing Timothy not to do. Timothy, instead of being ashamed, Timothy, please share in my suffering as we defend orthodox doctrine. Those of you who are pastors know exactly what I'm talking about. You can't lead your people because many of them are unwilling to follow and be committed to the cause of Christ. As a whole, American Christians are a lazy group of people. The greatest thing that could happen to American Christianity is for us to face persecution because that would allow us to see who is really willing to suffer for the cause of Christ. However, until that happens, we can and must take a stand for the cause of defending Orthodox doctrine. And that means that we have to be courageous. We have to share in suffering, even from groups that are so-called fundamentalists, and even from groups that we were once part of, and groups that our friends are part of, to take a stand and to call it out. That's what God has called us to. There's two ways in this passage, verses eight through 12, that Paul reminds Timothy to be courageous as he shares in suffering for the cause of Christ. The first way is by the power of God. He says that in verse eight. Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner, but share in the suffering for the gospel. How? By the power of God. How is Timothy supposed to share in the sufferings as a good soldier? Well, on one hand, Timothy could try to do this on his own. He could try to muster up the strength in his own power, but this would simply put Timothy into the category of legalism. Do it in your own strength, do it in your own power, do it in your own expertise. But Paul makes the argument that we share because of Christ, our example and enabler, as seen in verses nine through 11. He says this, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus. who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher. Paul is reminding Timothy, we are empowered to share in the suffering of Christ by the power of God. It is God who enables us, empowers us, and emboldens us to share in the suffering. for the cause of taking a stand for orthodox doctrine. Paul tells Timothy, take a stand. Push back against false doctrine, Timothy. Call out those who lead people astray, Timothy. Be willing to say things to your friends, Timothy. Do what you need to in taking a public stand in order to show that you are willing to have your name as a signer of the Declaration of Independence from those who add to the gospel. Timothy, do not become entangled in the affairs of this world so that you can stand and faithfully defend Orthodox doctrine, and Timothy, please do this in the power of God. That is Paul's plea to Timothy. Secondly, not only must Timothy be courageous in the power of God, he must not only be courageous, but he also must be courageous by the persuasion of his heart and his mind. Behind the power of God, Paul lays out this example for Timothy in verse 12 as he says this, which is why I suffer as I do, but I am not ashamed. Why? For I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. See, Paul is telling Timothy, in order to be courageous, to share in the sufferings of Jesus Christ, Timothy, you must be persuaded of Orthodox doctrine. Paul uses two words to describe what moves us from the category of being ashamed to the category of being able to suffer together with those who are suffering for the cause of Christ. Paul says, first of all, I know whom I have believed. The word know means to possess information about. The word believe means to be persuaded in your head and heart as based upon the person of Jesus Christ. Paul tells Timothy, listen, Timothy, I know who I believe. And I know who I am persuaded of because of Jesus Christ. But Paul takes it a step further and he says, Timothy, I am convinced which means to put that persuasion into action. There are many people in our congregations who would affirm the orthodoxy of scripture. They would affirm orthodox doctrine, but ask them to move from just simply believing that to actually being convinced about that, to put that persuasion into action, and we have different things happening within our churches. See, Paul was not only trusting that he was right to follow Christ, but he was absolutely convinced in his mind that this was the right decision. The confidence of Paul's persuasion was rooted in Christ alone. This is what Paul is talking about. I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Paul's entire confidence was rooted in Christ alone. You see, when I am not ashamed, I will share in the suffering for the gospel, which is standing for and defending Orthodox doctrine. The reason why cultural fundamentalists choose to fight and separate over non-Orthodox matters is because they have actually persuaded themselves that Orthodox doctrine is gospel plus. Oh sure, they know the fundamentals of the faith. but they are not convinced that those are the only fundamentals. So in their confusion, they fail to defend Orthodox doctrine alone. They add to Orthodox doctrine, and in their immature, exuberant behavior, they cause inestimable damage to the body of Christ. In the military, there's an expression for when casualties are caused by people who are supposed to be on our side. Our brothers in the chaplaincy will know this idea. It is called blue on blue. So if I'm not sure who or what the enemy is, I will be unable to navigate the chaos of warfare. So in the noise of battle with bullets and planes and bombs flying all around me, I can't determine if I'm supposed to shoot the person who has a trap set on their stage or the girl who is wearing pants or the guy who is telling me to go woke. It all looks the same to me. I'm not fully persuaded of what the Bible really says, and therefore, I am actually uncertain of what true Orthodox doctrine is. So in the chaos of war, I shoot the wrong person, and I feel fully justified in the arrogance of my self-righteousness to do that. You see, when we are not persuaded in our heart and mind of what Orthodox doctrine is, everything is the enemy. The problem with cultural fundamentalism is that we gave people a gun and loaded it with bullets and we told them to shoot, but we never grounded them in the reality of Orthodox doctrine. So the battlefield of Christianity is littered with the remains of people who were shot by friendly fire. Year after year for decades, churches, colleges and seminaries have launched men and women to quote, defend the faith. We have loaded their guns and sent them to battle, but never articulated that it is actually for the defense of the gospel. See, a trap set is not the enemy of the gospel. A girl in pants is not the enemy of the gospel. Not having Sunday evening services is not the enemy of the gospel. The enemy of the gospel has always been and always will be Satan. He is the enemy. And unfortunately, even within some of our IFCA churches, we are actually more interested in defending the traditions of the faith than we are in eradicating the enemy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is incumbent upon all of us to continually evaluate whether or not we are persuaded, putting into action, true Orthodox doctrine, or whether or not we are actually courageous enough to defend it. You may hear some of those examples presented and think they're trivial, but to an entire group of people, those are not trivial. Those are matters of life and death in their relationships with people that are supposedly on their side. So second of all, not only are we to be courageous, we see that in verses eight through 12, but second of all, we must be confident. Look at verse 13, what Paul says here. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me in faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Paul says, Timothy, first of all, I want you to be courageous by the power of God, by the persuasion of your heart and mind. But second of all, Timothy, I want you to be confident. Timothy, I want you to follow the pattern of sound words. The word follow is the Greek word, which means to clasp, to hold something tightly with your hands interlocked. It's this idea of clasping onto something, being confident of it. The word sound means to be true or pure or uncorrupted. The imperative command in verse 13 is follow. The direct object is sound words or orthodox doctrine. Timothy, be so confident that you are following, clasping your hands around orthodox doctrine. Question we have to ask ourselves is what do we have our hands clasped around? at the end of the day and all throughout the day, it is to be Orthodox doctrine. Timothy tells, Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, I want you to clasp your hands around the model, the pattern, the standard of Orthodox doctrine, which are these, the sound words of God. You see, as believers, we can clasp our hands around the word of God and those who follow it, or we can clasp our hands around the grains of empty sands of this world. A true fundamentalist will always grasp his hands around sola scriptura and labor hard to ensure that what he holds onto includes nothing but orthodox doctrine. So how do we do that? Well, Paul implies two things for Timothy. First of all, Timothy, you must trust the source. Verse 13, follow the pattern of sound words that you have heard from me in faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. You see, Paul has just reminded Timothy in verse 12 that he knows whom he has believed. Paul roots his trust in the person of Jesus Christ and he tells Timothy that Jesus Christ is the sole source that he should trust for Orthodox doctrine. Paul states unequivocally, that it is in fact Christ alone that he is reliant on. Christ is the trustworthy source, since his word is the source of orthodox doctrine. So Paul tells Timothy, trust the source. The source is Christ. The source is the words of Christ. That is our source of orthodox doctrine. Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, trust the source. But on a practical level, Paul tells Timothy, second of all, to trust the supplier. And this is where things can get a little dicey. Paul wants Timothy to remember those people who had a role in leading him to sound doctrine as a child. This is why he's mentioning in 2 Timothy 3, verses 14 through 15, but as for you, Timothy, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you have learned it, and how from childhood you have been equated with the sacred writings which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Paul then reminds Timothy, not only were you raised well by godly women who taught you well, but I have also taught you well, Paul says. That's why Paul says in 2 Timothy 2, verse two, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Like a blind student following the leading of their teacher as they lightly skim their hands over the raised dots to read Braille, we are to follow the pattern set out for us by those who are leading us to know and understand what healthy doctrine is. But for those of us who are teachers, there's a daunting task. As James 3 reminds us in verse one of James chapter three, verse one, not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. We live in a world where anything goes and anyone can be a teacher. No vetting, no concern, no oversight. James says that's a daunting task and actually an unwise task. Not many of you should actually be teachers because you will be judged with greater strictness. It's a daunting task for those who are following others. Are those who listen to and those who learn from actually teaching me what Orthodox doctrine is? That's the question I have to ask. So when I listen to a fellow pastor, or I listen to a fellow teacher, or I listen to Richard Bargus, I can't just assume, oh, well, he's a great guy, and oh, well, he's part of the IFCA. So I can just listen to whoever speaks and whoever teaches, and it's all okay. Do they adequately prepare me to know not only what is Orthodox doctrine, what Orthodox doctrine is not, and how to defend it accurately? As we are reminded in Titus chapter one, verse nine, speaking of the elders, he says, he must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. Pastors, elders, it's the same thing, by the way, are you giving instruction in sound doctrine to your congregants? Can you be trusted as the supplier of sound doctrine? You see, as I look back over my time growing up in cultural fundamentalism, there are a number of preachers and teachers who were fraudulent in how they presented the teachings of the word of God. Like was the case to my youth pastor when I was in seventh grade who told us in a message that if we ever failed to share the gospel with someone and they died, When we got to heaven, the blood of that person would literally be dripping off of our hands because the only reason that person would be in hell was because of us and our failure to witness. Do you know what that does to an impressionable 13-year-old kid? It's devastating. But that's what I grew up in. As Dr. Marsh pointed out last night, we live in an age of Christianity where a shocking number of Christians are biblically illiterate. What a shame to think that in a time when we have more access to Bible teaching, books, seminaries, podcasts, and every other form of media to pump out theology, and yet we are living in the most biblically illiterate times. It reveals that we are truly ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth of God's word, as Paul will remind us in 2 Timothy 3, verse seven. So you see, when we do not value the truth of God's word and the true understanding of orthodox doctrine, we will not cling to Christ alone or his word alone. So not only must Timothy be courageous, verses eight through 12, not only must he be confident in verse 13, but thirdly, the third imperative that Paul gives to Timothy is in verse 14, where he says to Timothy, be committed. Verse 14, he says this, by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. The imperative here is the idea of keep or preserve or protect. It's guard the good deposit. Timothy, here's your imperative. Be committed to guard the good deposit. Preserve, protect, defend the sound words of Christ, the orthodox doctrine of our faith. But the question is, what are we to preserve, protect, defend? The answer is the good deposit. Paul reminds us here that the word good means to be favorably valued. This is a synonym of the Greek word that's found in verse 13. The deposit that has been given to us is something that's been entrusted to someone's care. And so Paul reminds Timothy to guard the good deposit. That's what has been entrusted to us. Orthodox doctrine is healthy doctrine. And it is good and favorable and true. and true fundamentalists preserve, protect, and defend Orthodox doctrine. But how do we do that? How do we protect, preserve, and defend Orthodox doctrine? Simply put, we can only guard the good deposit of Orthodox doctrine in two ways by the Holy Spirit that Paul mentions here in verse 14. by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. Paul makes two thoughts here, by the protective work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the all-sufficient one to help protect or guard the good deposit from a universal sense, but it goes deeper. He is the one who protects us. He protects us by engraving his word on our hearts, and he is the one who enables us to know and to understand and to engage in the things of God. But second of all, the Holy Spirit does this through the strengthening work. Paul says, he is the one who dwells within us. The all-sufficient Holy Spirit, the God, the triune God, dwells within us. and he is able to help us as individuals to guard the good deposit that is within us. It is not up to Dave Dietz. It's not up to all the degrees that I may or may not have. It's not up to all the experiences that I may or may not have. See, those of us who are believers have the Holy Spirit indwelling us, which helps us to preserve the good deposit, the Orthodox doctrine. It is the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit which enables us not to do what Josh Harris did when he stated on Instagram on July 26, 2019, where he says this, quote, I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. The popular phrase for this is deconstruction. The biblical phrase is falling away. By all measurements that I have had for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian, end quote. What keeps us from doing what Josh Harris did? It's the work of the Holy Spirit within us. The indwelling work of the Holy Spirit enables us to stay faithful, to stay vigilant, to continue to guard the good deposit that has been entrusted to us. When we do not have the Holy Spirit indwelling within us, we can go through the motions for a time. But we will not only not persevere, we will eventually deconstruct. It's not just fundamentalists who stay faithful to orthodox doctrine by the Holy Spirit, but all Christians stay faithful to orthodox doctrine by the power of the Holy Spirit. Not only is he the one who protects us, he is the one who strengthens us. Paul's instruction to Timothy in this particular passage is this, Timothy, this is urgent. Guard the deposit right now and don't delay. So when we go home to our children, we should instruct them in the things of the word of God, the sound doctrine of God's word with urgency, without delay. When I served as a youth pastor in Farmington, New Mexico, we began a Bible study for our teenagers. We had about 15 teenagers who ranged anywhere between sixth grade, early sixth grade, fifth grade, through 12th grade, who went through Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer. There is nothing that says a young person cannot grasp the eternal truths of God's word. We have failed miserably in our churches when we stoop to the level of people who have been fed milk feeding other people milk. God helps me through His Spirit to protect me, and God will help me through His Spirit to strengthen me to defend sound doctrine. The beauty of it all is this, God has given us everything we need in order to defend Orthodox doctrine. We do not need Bob Jones University, or Brooks College, or Calvary University, or Master's Seminary, or any other thing to be our only source of knowing how to defend Orthodox doctrine, because God has given me everything I need through his word and the indwelling person of the Holy Spirit. Now that we have seen these three imperatives, verses eight through 14, There's two applications that Paul is going to make. The commands that he gave to us were to be courageous, to be confident, to be committed. But now we need to examine two applications that Paul gives to us in verses 15 through 18. First of all, Paul says this in verse 15. You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are fagellists and homogenies. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. But when he arrived in Rome, he searched for me and earnestly found me. May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day. And you well know all the services he rendered to us at Ephesus. Paul's gonna mention first of all in verse 15, the first application of this passage is this, be concerned. What are we to be concerned about? Verse 15, you are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phagellus and Hermogenes. Paul says the issue that we are to be concerned about is with those who have failed to defend Orthodox doctrine. I grew up on a farm in Northern Illinois. We raised all sorts of animals, cows, pigs, goats, even ostriches. There's a theory that says ostriches stick their head in the sand. I don't know if we had odd ostriches, but they never stuck their head in the sand, maybe because we had dirt. But the issue is this, as believers, we act like the figurative ostrich. where we see those who have fallen away or those who have failed to defend Orthodox doctrine and we have refused to say anything about that. And Paul tells us here, he tells Timothy, be concerned, Timothy, with those who are failing to defend Orthodox doctrine. The Greek word here is apostropho. There's too many other Greek people in this room, and I'm not gonna fancy myself as a Greek person. I have Lagos. But the Greek word is apostropho, which means a failure to help someone. Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, be aware of those who have turned away, those who have failed to help those who are defending orthodox doctrine. Paul is telling Timothy that there are those who call themselves believers and who even claim at one point to be defenders of orthodox doctrine. Yet when they heard of Paul's imprisonment for proclaiming the gospel and defending orthodox doctrine, they refused to help. They refuse to be part of those who identify with Paul and they refuse to help him. And Paul warns Timothy of those in Asia who had deserted him. Specifically, he mentions two men, Phagellus and Hermogenes, as specific people who abandoned him. Think about that. For all time, the names of Phagellus and Hermogenes will be stamped with the name coward. What a way to be remembered. There's also a synonym for apostropho, and it's the Greek word which means to deny, which is the word that is used when described of Peter when he denied knowing Christ three times the night Christ was arrested. No doubt Paul had this thought in mind as he specifically calls out these two men. That's why he mentions to Timothy in chapter four, verses 16 through 18, at my first defense, no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them, but the Lord stood by me and strengthened me. so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever, amen. See, the issue is this, whether I have a platform to preach the gospel or to publicly defend Orthodox doctrine is not the issue. Being a Christian warrants that my duty is to defend Orthodox doctrine, including not deserting those who stand for truth, regardless of if they are part of my ecclesiastical fellowship or not. So if you hear of the Southern Baptists being criticized for taking a stand and you turn a blind eye, that is not okay. We stand with those who defend Orthodox doctrine. Defending Orthodox doctrine is not a job given exclusively to the elders, it is a job given to all believers. But then finally, the second application that Paul gives, not only must you be concerned, in verse 15, but in verses 16 through 18, Paul says this, be cognizant, Timothy, Look in verse 16. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Anesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. But when he arrived in Rome, he searched for me earnestly and he found me. May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day. And you well know all the services he rendered at Ephesus. Paul tells Timothy, be cognizant of those who suffer for defending orthodox doctrine. Be concerned about those who don't. Be concerned about those who turn away. But Timothy, be cognizant of those who suffer for defending Orthodox doctrine. Paul was under constant persecution and suffering for defending the gospel. This is why he mentions this specific person. His name is Onesiphorus. He was unashamed to be associated with Paul, and Paul was eternally grateful for him. We also know that Paul was especially thankful of the church at Philippi, who linked themselves arm in arm and stood side by side for the gospel of Paul. That's why Paul mentions that in Philippians chapter one, verses three through 11, where he says this, I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all, making my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this. that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. Well, how do we show that we are cognizant of those who are avidly defending the gospel? Paul reminds us that here in this passage. He says, first of all, partner together with those who are defending Orthodox doctrine. Second of all, partake together with those who defend Orthodox doctrine. Partake in their suffering. Partake in their stance. Believers must support, encourage, and come to the defense of those who are suffering as they defend Orthodox doctrine, even if they don't have IFCA in their name. God has called us to be fellow brothers and sisters linked arm in arm for the gospel. See, the problem with everything that I've said tonight is that some of those who are outside of biblical fundamentalism would say amen to what I've said. There may be even some on the liberal side who would say amen to some of what has been said. But what is really happening is a tale of two perspectives. On the one hand, you have the liberal and liberal theology, which is the denial of the gospel message. And on the other hand, you have legalism and the legalistic person who has added to the gospel for the purposes of separation. So here's what's happened. On the left, the liberal has hijacked the doctrine of God's love and they have weaponized it against believers. If you don't embrace this, you don't love. If you don't accept this, you don't love. If you don't tolerate this, you don't love. Some would even say in essence, I hate you because you don't love like I do, which is a code for you don't tolerate like I do. The liberal has hijacked God's love and he has weaponized it against believers and especially against fundamentalists. But let's talk about the right side. on the right side, even though it seems that in some cases their motives were right. The legalistic person or the legalistic fellowship has hijacked the doctrine of God's holiness and they have weaponized it against believers. If you wear that, you are unholy. If you listen to that, you are unholy. If you read from that version, you are unholy. And so for years, literally hundreds of thousands of believers have been held hostage by men and women who have paralyzed them with the fear of violating God's holiness. And we really did begin to look at God from the lens of the monkey in the circus. Is the great circus master going to give us the banana of his blessing? or will he beat us once again with some problem, trial, or tragedy in our life to pay us back for not being holy enough? I was a victim of that cultish behavior for years, as many of you were. So what do we do? I wanna take us back to the North Pole, and we're gonna finish talking about Buddy. Remember the elves at the North Pole who found the cute baby in Santa's bag and they don't have the heart to be honest with him and so they just go along with the notion that the baby is an elf. I mean, it's a cute Christmas story. They name the baby, they compensate for the baby, they coddle the baby. They do everything to convince him that he is an elf when everyone except Buddy knows he is not. In this scenario, I wanna make this argument. Biblical fundamentalists are the elves and Buddy is the legalistic person or the liberal person who has shown up at the North Pole. And for years we have tried to figure out how to deal with Buddy. We told him he is a fundamentalist and we have allowed him to believe that he is a fundamentalist when everyone except Buddy knows that he is in fact not a fundamentalist. Well, it is absolutely time that we have the talk with Buddy and inform him that he is not a fundamentalist. Anyone who adds the qualifiers of standards of dress, of styles of music or translations of the Bible or any other arbitrary thing to the gospel and uses that as a standard of separation is in fact not a fundamentalist. Anyone who takes the theology of God's word and changes it to neglect the gospel is not a fundamentalist. Why would we make such an outrageous, controversial statement? It's because those who are liberal or those who are legalistic have failed to execute their mission of defending Orthodox doctrine by adding to what constitutes or denying what constitutes Orthodoxy. Brothers and sisters, we cannot reclaim biblical fundamentalism and continue to ignore the elephant in the room. What has happened, however, is this. The elves, the true fundamentalists, have abandoned the name elf. They are elves but they are afraid to call themselves elf because Buddy, who isn't an elf, thinks he's an elf. And instead of being honest with Buddy and actually taking a stand to defend the fact that Buddy truly is no elf, the real elves have abandoned the name and run from it out of fear of being called an elf because they don't have the heart or the courage to stand up and reclaim the name that they surrendered when Buddy showed up to the North Pole. There are some who believe that the word and even the concept of fundamentalism cannot be redeemed. I get that. However, we must all admit that what has happened is that for years we have sat silent as the historic concept of fundamentalism was slowly stolen by a group of people who have illegitimately called liberalism or legalism fundamentalism. It is time to sit idly by no longer and for us to redeem this word and this concept. Those who have been part of cultural fundamentalism have taken Christ and the gospel and they have added to it. They have said it isn't just that you defend the gospel but that you defend music choices, you defend dress standards, you defend Bible versions and so on. So it isn't the gospel alone, Christ alone, it is the gospel plus. There is no difference than what they have done and what the liberals have done who reject the gospel altogether. So what's the point of all of this? The point is this, this is a call to arms. To all those who are willing to defend Orthodox doctrine, the call is this, join us. To those who have been part of a fellowship who no longer want to die on hills that are unorthodox, come join us. To those who have been part of a fellowship that has bowed to modern societal trends or who hide abuse in their churches, come join us. When Martin Luther was urged to recant his statements contained in the 95 thesis and his other writings and teachings, he refused. The church was struggling to deal with this brash German troublemaker. And in January 1521, Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X. By mid-April, Luther found himself answering allegations of heresy at the now-famous Diet of Worms, with the strong possibility that the 37-year-old excommunicated would be burned at the stake. Luther was again given an opportunity to save himself. All he had to do was recant, and all would be forgiven. He responded with these now famous words, my conscience is captive to the word of God. Thus I cannot and will not recant because acting against one's conscience is neither safe nor sound. Here I stand, I can do no other, God help me. That was 1521. Six years later, Martin Luther, writing in 1527, as the bubonic plague swept across Europe, those who are engaged in the spiritual ministry, such as preachers and pastors, must likewise remain steadfast because of the perils of death, he said, because we have a plain command from Christ. He said this, quote, a good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep, but the hireling sees the wolf coming and flees. For when people are dying, they most need a spiritual ministry which strengthens and comforts their consciences by word and sacrament, and in faith, overcomes death. This would become the impetus for Luther's work, which we sang on Monday night entitled, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God. May we raise up a million more Luthers. to stand strong in the face of opposition and defend Orthodox doctrine. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for tonight. We thank you for your word. Give us courage, give us commitment, give us confidence, help us to be cognizant and concerned for all that is happening in our world today. We thank you, Father, for all that you do for us. We pray these things in your son's name. Amen.