I wonder when was the last time that you sat down and you wrote a letter. It is a dying art, isn't it? We have the WhatsApp. We have the text. We have the email. We have the Twitter. And we have the blog. We're living in the age when you do things in a much less formal way, and you send short, sharp messages. And there's nothing wrong with that, of course, in and of itself. But letter writing is an art of its own. I think of perhaps letters that you received, you who are in the older generation, maybe from the person to whom you're now married, while you were separated. Or a letter you received, letters you received from family or friends in days when there weren't telephones and such things. And you watched out for the letter coming to tell you how things were. with your loved ones. Well, in the New Testament, 22 of the 27 books are letters. Letters. Some were written to a group of churches and others were written to individuals. Most were written to a single congregation and Some were written to an individual with a congregation in the background. And this latter group is the group into which 1st and 2nd Timothy fall. Timothy is a young pastor. He is like a son to Paul. So you can imagine how much each looks forward to news from the other. And here now, towards the end of his life, Paul writes two letters, 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy. Whilst Timothy is the minister of the church in Ephesus. That's a church in modern day Turkey. This letter, 2 Timothy, is written from prison. That's where Paul is. And it is now the second half of the 60s, possibly AD 56, 57, probably not any later than 58. And Paul is actually on death row. Now to be in death row, it's an American phrase. It means the next place for you is probably the electric chair. Death, you're in death row. And Paul has that sense that he is living on death row. Not outside of the will of God, but at the heart of the will of God. And as he writes now to Timothy, what is Paul concerned about? Is he concerned about himself? Is he concerned about the way in which he might die and whether it's going to be painful, whether he's going to be afraid or anything like that? No, Paul is concerned about the gospel, the gospel as he dies and the progress of the gospel in the life of Timothy and in the church at Ephesus. And this morning we want to look at 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 1, sorry, from verse 1 to chapter 2 verse 1, where he writes about the gospel. Paul's concern is the gospel. And there's three things he says in this section of his letter to Timothy about the gospel. First of all, he says, suffer for the gospel bravely. Suffer for the gospel bravely. Now none of us like pain, I'm sure. None of us like suffering, if it can be avoided. But there is some suffering, boys and girls, and men and women, that cannot be avoided. There is suffering in our bodies that cannot be avoided because of the presence of sin, which brings sickness and ultimately death. And the most advanced medicine is not able to deal with some suffering physically. But that's not what Paul's writing about here. Paul's not concerned, Timothy, I know you've got a bad stomach, that is true, and I want you to suffer with it, bear with it. No, he wants Timothy to suffer for the gospel. And why would that be necessary? We might ask. That Timothy, the minister of a church in Ephesus, should suffer for the gospel. Well, it all has to do with the reason why Paul himself is in prison. Paul, boys and girls, and men and women, is the apostle to the Gentiles. Now that means, here's a simple way boys and girls remember, another word for Gentiles is the outsider. The person who's outside the church. And in Paul's day, there were two big groups of people. There were the Jews. They were the insiders in the church. They'd been there since the time of Abraham. And then there were the Gentiles. They were the outsiders. And they were outside the church. And over the period from Abraham until Paul, God brought in one here and another there and somebody else over here as outsiders into the church. But now, he's raised up this man, Paul, and Paul's whole life and ministry has been to the outsider. Now, of course, he was in church on the Lord's Day to worship. He probably preached most Lord's Days in the church. But his work and his energy and his prayers were particularly focused on those who never darkened a church door, these Gentiles. And Paul has been preaching for 15, 20 years now. And his message has been this. In Jesus Christ, the outsider, comes to God, becomes a member of the church on exactly the same terms as the person who's grown up in the church. In other words, both groups are sinners, both groups cannot bring themselves to God, and each group is brought to God only through the life of Jesus that was sinless and the death of Jesus, which was sin bearing for others. But you see the insiders, those who believe this message inside the church, they want to say, well, those outsiders, you know, there's a few more things we need to ask them to do. We need to make sure they're serious. We need to make sure that they're going to keep the Old Testament ceremonial law, but washing of hands and special days, and they've got to be able to tick our boxes that we had in the past. And Paul has spent his life saying, no. It's not Jesus Christ plus circumcision. It's not Jesus Christ plus the ceremonial laws of hand washing and keeping special days other than the Lord's day. It is Jesus Christ alone that the outsider is accepted. And it is by Jesus Christ alone that the insider, the Jew, is also acceptable to God. But you see, there are those who don't like that message in the church. Because they feel it a little bit better than these outsiders. And these people that don't like Paul's message, that these outsiders can come in and fill the pews in their church the same way as they do, they have been giving Paul a hard time. And they've been accusing Paul of things that are not true. that he doesn't agree with Moses and that he is about destroying the purity of the worship of God. And they've eventually worked away in opposition to Paul until they've gotten him put in prison. And Paul is now in Rome. And that, boys and girls, is like if you were in the United Kingdom being in London. It's where all the power is. and where big things happen, and he's in this prison. And he's saying to Timothy, Timothy, suffer for the gospel bravely, but suffer together with me for the gospel, is what he says in verse eight, literally translated. But suffer together with me. What's he saying, boys and girls? and men and women, he's saying the gospel I preached, Paul the apostle, that the outsider and the insider come to God on the same basis, that's the gospel, Timothy, you preach. Keep on preaching that in Ephesus. And if that means suffering for you, Timothy, even that you end up in prison, either with me or after me, then so be it. And men and women, and boys and girls, there is nothing more important for us, for you, your children, your grandchildren, my family, my grandchildren, for the insider than the gospel. And there's nothing more important for the outsider, your neighbor, your people that you work with, the people you go to school with, the people that are part of your wider family who never go to church, there's nothing more important for them than the gospel. And we have to hold to the gospel, not that's fashionable in our day, or that people want to make up themselves, but the gospel that Jesus gave to Paul and to Peter and to John, to the apostles. It's the gospel that's written down in the New Testament and explained and applied and worked out in daily life. And the day is surely coming, is it not? Some of you will already have experienced it in your place of work, within your families, where these words of Paul literally are true for you, suffer together with me for the gospel. You are in distinguished company when you suffer for the gospel. You're in the company of Christ. You're in the company of the apostles. You're in the company of the greatest men and women that have ever lived in the world, no matter what they were in terms of ability and job and all those sort of things. Suffer for the gospel bravely. And of course, nowhere is that more clearly seen than in Scotland of old. We had a little bit of time on our hands. No, we didn't have time on our hands. We planned it into our schedule that we wanted to see some of the sites, and we'll be having a word with Jimmy afterwards, but that's a separate thing, about how difficult it is to find Earth's moss. Richard Cameron, Brother Thomas, five others, slaughtered for the gospel on Erdsmos. Because they said, the Jesus who is the savior of men is also the king of the church and the nation and of the whole earth. And they suffered for the gospel bravely. And there are clouds gathering in the United Kingdom, very powerfully and very clearly in our day and age, which are going to break forth in suffering for the gospel. I don't believe it's directly connected with COVID-19, but we've seen it manifested in COVID-19. When The government says we can tell the church whether it can worship or not on the Lord's day. And I could say a lot more about that, but I'm not going to. But it's simply an illustration. And we are right as Christians, and we are right, I don't mean that in an arrogant way, but humbly and graciously, we are right when we say this body of people belongs to Jesus Christ. He is the one who tells us to worship. And he tells us to do it every Lord's Day. except when his providence prevents it. And it's gotta be his providence, not the intervention of men who think they are God. So brethren, let's realize the gospel matters. If we don't stand for the gospel in our age, our grandchildren will not have it. Our neighbors won't have it. Scotland won't have it. Northern Ireland won't have it. We've got to suffer for the gospel, really. But then secondly, let's see here. We are also to safeguard the gospel faithfully. And I put in the word safe to get another S. Safeguard or guard the gospel faithfully. We're looking now at verses 13 and 14. I really haven't said anything and I'll not be saying much about verses one to seven because they're interpersonal between Paul and Timothy. The kind of thing that you would say in a letter when you're writing to your father or your son or a friend. And yes, there are lots of things to learn there, but it's introductory and it's not the body of the message. So let's look now at verses 13 and 14. Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed to you, that good thing which was committed to you, Timothy, keep. Literally it is God. Be a soldier over by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. Timothy has been associated with Paul for most of Paul's ministry. For more than 15 years by this stage. And when Paul came into contact with Timothy at Lystra, He was a new believer, a young believer. The things that Paul heard, the recommendation that he received from the local church, and that's, we could miss that, but that was vitally important, was the basis upon which Paul took Timothy with him on his missionary journey. And since then, the relationship has grown and deepened. And Paul has realized that under God, here is a man whom God has given him to shape and to train so that after Paul's day, because Paul's an older man, the baton of the gospel will be carried on. And you can imagine Timothy. Paul's his hero. Boys and girls, maybe you've got a hero. Maybe you're a footballer, you like playing football, and you've got a football hero. Well, Paul was Timothy's hero. Practically everything he's learned about the ministry, he has learned from Paul. He has come to a clear understanding of the gospel. He's grown in more likeness to Christ through Paul's teaching and influence. He has been developed in his gifts, which were there, some of which were there before his conversion and others were given at his ordination by the Holy Spirit. And Those gifts, Paul has helped Timothy to hone them and to shape them. Again, in the same way, if you are interested in a sport and you're showing some skill, or maybe it's learning to play the piano, you get a teacher or a tutor and they hone those gifts until, actually, you begin to shine on your own. And that's the stage that has now come. Timothy will never be equal to Paul because Paul's an apostle. Paul has direct revelation given to him by the risen Christ, was caught up into the seventh heaven. Timothy will never experience anything like that. But the things that Paul has experienced and learned from Christ have been taught to Timothy by Paul. Paul's now about to die. It's like, imagine a stage. And Paul's about to walk off into the wings of the stage. And who's going to be standing in his shoes? Timothy. Timothy. And Paul is saying to Timothy, Timothy, it's not just about you're going to have to suffer for the gospel, but I am calling on you to guard this gospel. I'm calling on you to be a soldier, a soldier. And a soldier is someone who protects what is in danger. A soldier is someone who extends and reaches out as well and goes out to conquer other places. And so Timothy, I want you to protect this gospel. That doesn't mean you hide it away in some safe place. No, you stand up publicly and you defend it as I have done before the Jewish leaders and also before the Roman authorities, before Caesar himself. To the point that Caesar said, Paul, you're about to lose your head. You're going off your mind. You're going out of your mind. You're off your head. And Paul says, Timothy, I want you to be willing to guard the gospel. And you can imagine a little Timothy And Timothy's doesn't have a strong stomach. And Timothy is a bit shy and backward. Timothy's young. And here, this huge responsibility is being placed upon him, but notice he's not doing it in his own strength. That good thing which was committed to you, guard. by the Holy Spirit who dwells in you, no, in us. And how wonderful that is. Safeguard the gospel. And in your family, There will be a generation, perhaps in your family, that are now older and less able. I see it as I come into your congregation amongst your eldership. And they have stood for the gospel and they have safeguarded the gospel. But the Timothys need to come forward. The Timothys need to be raised up. The Timothys need to be called and they need to be equipped and they need to be ready to guard the gospel like a soldier in the same way as these old men, sorry men, older men have done. But it applies to our families as well. You will maybe have, maybe your godly parents or grandparents are already gone. And who's going to now guard the gospel that they're gone? Well, it's up to you. You're now center stage and it's up to you to lead your family in worship in the home day by day. It's up to you to bring your family to church on the Lord's day. It's up to you to apply the gospel to your own life and to the lives of those who are under your responsibility. It's up to you to be praying, especially now for neighbors and those around you. But notice, and never forget, you're not asked to do this in your strength. You're asked to do it by the Holy Spirit. Timothy could have written back and said, Paul, it's too much, it's too much. But he's no grounds to do that because Paul has already disarmed him. He said, it's by the Holy Spirit, Timothy. It's not by your spirit. And so none of us can say, well, Lord, what you're asking me to do is too much, too much for me. Because he is the one who's given us the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit enables us for the tasks that God has for us to do. And when he brings us center stage and takes the older generation to be with him, the Holy Spirit will enable us. So, suffer for the gospel bravely, safeguard the gospel faithfully, the gospel that you've heard, the gospel that you believed. Timothy, remember you saw it in your mother and it was there in your grandmother? Imagine three generations in the gospel. Then let's notice thirdly, serve the gospel sacrificially, sacrificially. There is something very poignant, almost plaintive in Paul's situation. He's a veteran soldier. One of those men in the gospel that if there was a Remembrance Day would be there wearing the Chelsea garb. He's a veteran. And he writes in 2 Corinthians about all the things that he's suffered and experienced in the gospel. In fact, he touches on that a little bit in chapter 3, verse 11. He says, Timothy, you've known my manner of life and you've known my purpose, faith, long suffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra. What persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord has delivered me. So, but here now is this veteran, this genius of a man, and where is he? He is alone in a cell. Well, basically it is a cave. somewhere underground. It's wet. It's cold. It's dark. Paul feels a need for his top coat. Paul needs some books to occupy his mind. And he needs some friends to share the burden. It's a sad picture, isn't it? But this is what often happens to the servants of God. In this world, we will have tribulation. There's no guarantee that at the very end of our lives that our tribulation will not be at its greatest. Certainly it was for Paul. And his arrest and his imprisonment, and now in the cell, they've shown up two types of believer. in the church at Ephesus. And that's why Paul says, or why I'm giving it the heading, serve the gospel faithfully. Because here in verse 15, Paul speaks about two men, and here's one group, that the church that has come to the fore, and it's those who turn from Paul, and from Paul's gospel, from Paul's ministry. And they are phagellus and termogenes. Verse 15. This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are phagellus and termogenes. Now notice the words turned away from me. I think that's significant. I believe it's significant. It doesn't say turned away from Christ. But you see, it's this group again that have been against Paul, and they've got supporters in Ephesus, and they have turned away from Paul. It's dangerous to be associated with Paul, and they don't agree with Paul. There's another one mentioned in chapter four, verse 10, Demas. Well, he's a different kind of fish. He loves the world more than Christ, and he's gone back into the world. And then there's Alexander, chapter four, verse 14, and he's somebody who actually hasn't just turned away from Paul, he's worked actively against Paul to bring trouble into Paul's life. And the thing that marks this group is they did not stand with me. Did not stand with me. That's one group. But then there's another group. of whom Onesiporus is the shining example. Verses 16 to 18. The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiporus, for he often refreshed me, and he was not ashamed of my chains. But when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and found me. The Lord granted him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that day. And you know very well in how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus. Timothy. Look at Onesipus. He is a shining example. He's a member of the church, obviously in Ephesus. And when Paul was ministering there, and you remember he ministered there for 18 months, this man obviously was supporting Paul. Paul, how can I help you? Paul, what can I pray for you today? Paul, what are you doing next week? Paul, would you like to have a meal with our family? Here's a man who's encouraged. And it's a challenge to us, isn't it? How much do we encourage the servants of the gospel? You're without a minister at present, but when God gives you a new minister, make sure that you are an anesthetist to him, who encourages, who helps in how many ways? And this man, Onesipus, when he hears that Paul's in prison in Rome and going to stand before Caesar, he doesn't just say, well, let's pray for Paul. He packs his bags and he goes to Rome to visit Paul. And when he arrives in Rome, he hasn't the first idea of where he's going to find Paul. He didn't have a postcode. or a sat-nav that was going to take him to the exact spot. And you can imagine this man in Nazareth, and he goes from one house to another, perhaps Christians that he knew, maybe he went and met with the church and said, do you know where Paul is? Verse 17, he sought me out very diligently. It's like the woman searching for her coin. He swept her house clean. It is like the wise men looking for the newborn Jesus. No effort was spared. Didn't stop at anything, this man, until he found Paul. There's a man that's not ashamed of the gospel. There's a man that's not ashamed to die if needs be for the gospel. Now, of course, there are others as well that Paul refers to here. There's Titus, there's Luke, there's Tychicus, when you come to the end of chapter four, I think it is, or the end of the letter. But do you see what Paul's doing? He's saying, Timothy, when tribulation comes to the church and persecution comes to the church, there's a distinction that takes place. And people can fall into two groups. And there are those who turn away and say, oh, well, that's a bit too strong. The gospel doesn't mean that much, and it's not that important, and I'm not prepared to go that far. But then there's people who stand firm, risking everything for the gospel, sacrificing everything for the gospel. And Paul says to Timothy, Timothy, I want you to be an anesthetist. I want you to be a Nazareth and I want you to serve the gospel sacrificially. So brethren, let's reflect today on our lives. Looking at your life, yourself, your family looking at your life, your neighbors looking at your life, your colleagues at work looking at your life, what would they say is the most important thing to you? Is it the gospel? Is it Jesus Christ, Savior, Lord, King? Are you marred by these three characteristics of a gospel-centered life? Suffering for the gospel bravely. Safeguarding the gospel faithfully in the office when somebody is propounding some strange philosophy of our day and generation about marriage, about whatever that is anti-biblical, safeguarding the gospel faithfully, and serving the gospel sacrificially, not just doing your bit. That's how we often think about it, isn't it? Well, if we all do our bit, then we'll achieve a great deal. And that's true, that is absolutely true. But how much more we would achieve under Christ if we did far more than our bit? If we served the gospel sacrificially, went out of our way, risked our lives for the sake of the gospel and to help and encourage those who are the servants of Christ in the gospel, to help and encourage our elders. So, you're asking the question, how can I do this? How could Timothy do this? Young, timid, ill health, well, we've touched already on by the power of God, verse eight, but then notice verse 14. by the Holy Spirit, we noted that as well. And then, if you notice, verse one, verse nine, verse 13, and chapter two, verse one, the words, in Christ Jesus, here's the answer. It's really chapter two, verse one. You therefore, my son, be strong. It literally is keep on being strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. We're to do these things. We're to be these things. Today, tomorrow, the next day, as we're called to do these things and as we aspire to do these things, we need to keep on being strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. We'll not do it in our own strength. We'll not do it on the strength of history or tradition. Those that have died in the past for these things, they're dead, they're gone. They can't do a single thing for us. They can challenge us, but they can't enable us. The only one who is dead that can enable us is the one who's risen again, Jesus Christ. So let's be strengthened. in His grace, the word, prayer, fellowship, day by day. Amen.