As much as it was good to be away, it is good to stand here in the pulpit again. Fresh starts. Today we begin a new sermon series titled, “Keep the Faith.” We’ll be working through 2 Timothy. Fitting, after having just worked through 1 Timothy.

          We don’t know how much time has elapsed between 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy, but there have been some major developments.

          First, Timothy is still pastoring in Ephesus. Some years have passed and the job hasn’t gotten any easier. In fact, it seems things have grown more challenging. Opposition to Timothy is intense, he is still combatting false teachings, people have left the church, he is struggling.

          Second, Paul is imprisoned in Rome. This does not appear to be the house arrest at the end of Acts. Likely Paul was released from house arrest, continued his Apostolic ministry, and some time later was arrested again – likely in Troas. Paul understands he will not escape this imprisonment alive. He knows his time is short. He knows he will be executed.

          There are two primary reasons Paul writes this second letter to Timthy. First, he is encouraging his young protégé, strengthening him in the ministry, and affirming his deep love for him. Paul urges and encourages Timothy to “Keep the Faith!”

          The second reason Paul writes this letter, as we’ll see at the end, is to appeal to Timothy to visit him in Rome. And though Paul makes this appeal, you get the sense that Paul doesn’t think Timothy will arrive in time. 2 Timothy is a letter that has every marker of being written by a dying man – a man condemned to die. Indeed, Paul was executed under the Emperor Nero sometime between 65 and 67 AD.

It’s impossible to know if Timothy made it to Rome in time. But it is reasonable to think these are Paul’s last words to Timothy – the last words Timothy will ever hear from Paul, the man of God who so invested in him and loved him, Timothy’s spiritual father. 2 Timothy is deeply personal; Paul’s most intimate letter.

          Though this letter is written from one individual to another – in a specific time with a specific context – we are to see in Paul and Timothy models for how we are to live in our day, for how we are to serve God in our generation. Our generation is desperate for men and women of God who live and serve like Paul and Timothy.

          Let me tell you the two main points I want you to see in this text.

1.      Hearts are healed and strengthened when we encourage one another.

2.      We must fan into flame the fires of faith.

          Read vs 1-7

          Right off the bat we start seeing Paul’s purposes for this letter and receive hints of his impending death. Paul is an Apostle because the Father willed it and the Son appointed him. Paul’s apostleship accords to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus.

Paul did not live his life for his own glory, nor for the fading comforts and pleasures of earth – unlike countless so-called “apostles” of our day: charlatans and blasphemers. Paul lived his life for Jesus. As he says in chapter 4, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (4:7).” Paul has lived this life according to the promises of Christ Jesus even if it meant suffering, even if it meant chains and execution. And though he sits on the verge of death, his hope is in the promise of everlasting life. Life is in Christ Jesus, abundant life now, everlasting life forever!

          Then, just as he did in his first letter, he prays for Timothy – that God would lavish grace, mercy, and peace upon him. For Timothy is not one of those false apostles or charlatan pastors, he is Paul’s beloved child. With the deep affection you have for your child, so does Paul love Timothy. And when a son hears his father’s expression of love for him, that affirmation is like armor for the heart.

Fathers, tell your sons and daughters how much you love them, how proud they make you. Your words will help steel them for the temptations and travails they must live through. When loving words of a father are absent, or when there is no love in those words, how broken is that poor son or daughter? Fathers, speak life into your children and don’t wait for tomorrow; it might not come.

          After affirming Timothy as his beloved child, and praying for him, Paul continues to offer deep encouragement to his spiritual son.

          Read vs 3-5

          Paul’s way of writing is complex, so let me simplify the idea in these three verses. Verse 3, I thank God…verse 4, for your sincere faith. Paul is both thanking God and encouraging Timothy. I thank God for your sincere faith.

The word translated as “sincere” comes from the Greek word literally meaning “without hypocrisy.” Greco-Roman people loved the theatre. You’ve probably heard the Greek word for a stage actor before: hypocrite. The actor would stand on a stage and hide their face behind a mask. They would pretend to be someone else and conceal their true identity.

          The false teachers from Paul’s first letter to Timothy wear masks. In 1:15 Paul mentions Phygelus and Hermogenes, two men that hid behind masks. Throughout this letter Paul will mention people who have the appearance of godliness (3:5), imposters (3:13), and people who have deserted him in times of difficulty (4:16). Hypocrites have been a plague to Paul. I’m sure you too have been plagued by hypocrites.

How about you? Have you ever put on a mask? Have you acted as a hypocrite? In one way or another, all of us have.

          “But not you Timothy! Not you. I thank God for your sincere faith!”

          Paul’s words are not empty platitudes. Perhaps better than anyone else, Paul knows Timothy has sincere faith, and he wants Timothy to know why.

Paul encourages Timothy with 5 proofs of his sincere faith.

          The first proof of sincere faith: In verse 3 Paul says he serves God. If Paul faithfully serves God, then so does Timothy. His is sincere faith!

The second proof of sincere faith: As did his ancestors. From Acts 16 we learn that Timothy’s mother was a Jew. Paul and Timothy are both descendants of Israel. Jesus said. “Salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22). And though salvation does not flow through bloodlines, Timothy belongs to the people through whom God has worked salvation – a salvation at work in Timothy. His faith is sincere!

          The third proof of sincere faith: Paul continually prays for Timothy, night and day. The Apostle Paul, perhaps the greatest Christian that has ever lived, known throughout the Roman Empire, prays for Timothy night and day. As far as I can reckon, Paul only prays for this individual with such fervency. Paul so trusts Timothy’s faith holds fast because of the powerful work of God! God ensures Timothy has sincere faith!

          The fourth proof of sincere faith likely came from the last meeting between Paul and Timothy, when Timothy wept. Verse 4 speaks of an overflow of tears, not misty eyes. We can guess that Timothy wept because not only did he love Paul, but because he was the Apostle! Like a child having his security blanket taken, like a son saying goodbye to his father, Paul was leaving Timothy.

          What was he going to do without Paul? Paul was the Apostle, who was Timothy without him. He wanted to minister with Paul. Oh, when there is someone you both love and love to minister with – whose presence is like gasoline on the fires of your faith – when parting comes it feels like a piece of your heart is ripped out. Timothy’s tears were a sign of his humility, and of the sincere faith that bound him to Paul.

Paul remembers when they parted, the tears of his beloved child, and it moves him. Paul longs to see him again, to be filled with the joys of reunion.

The fifth proof of sincere faith is Timothy’s family. Timothy’s grandmother, Louis, and mother, Eunice, were women of sincere faith. These were Jewish women loved God’s word, and raised Timothy to love the same. They hoped in the Messiah, and when they heard the gospel of Jesus Christ they believed. But Paul is saying something more than this: the faith they had, true and authentic, that sincere faith is in you, Timothy!

If you came to faith later in life, it is often a dramatic experience. Jesus changes everything, and life after conversion looks radically different than life before. Faith is obvious. But if you’ve grown up in a Christian home – somewhat like Timothy did – it is so easy to slip into a comfortable Christianity. It becomes difficult to know if that faith is truly your own.

If that is your story, like it is mine, how many times have you wrestled with the question: Do I really believe? What is wrong with me that I can’t be the person I know I am called to be? Am I just a fake? Do I really have faith?

How powerful then when a man or woman of God looks at your life, seeing your character and your heart, and says, the faith you grew up with truly dwells in you. You are authentically, definitively, a follower of Jesus. Your faith is sincere! This is what Paul is doing when, in verse 5, he says, “I am sure the faith of your grandmother and mother dwells in you, Timothy!”

Mothers, how significant is your influence on your children’s faith! Mothers, teach your children the Scriptures, pray for them and teach them to pray! Sincere faith lasts forever, and this is where you must spend yourself.

Brothers and sisters, younger believers need your encouragement. Do you see anyone demonstrating sincere faith? Can you speak encouragement into that?

How encouraging Paul’s words must have been to Timothy! Five compelling and intimate reasons why Paul was convinced of Timothy’s sincere faith.

But there is something even deeper that Paul is doing for his beloved child. Paul speaks about Timothy’s mother and grandmother. Where is Timothy’s father? In Acts 16 we learn that Timothy’s father was a Greek, a pagan, rejecting the word of Jesus. This is the only mention of Timothy’s father. At best Timothy’s father was absent, at worst he was not a good father.

We can learn from the New Testament a bit about Timothy’s psychology: in addition to being frequently ill, he was often anxious, sometimes fearful, and afflicted by self-doubt. He was not a man’s man. He was not the guy people would have picked to be Paul’s right-hand man. Every indication point towards Timothy bearing wounds from his father.

But by the mercy of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit, Paul entered Timothy’s life and became a father to him. Paul’s words of encouragement, of authenticating Timothy’s faith, it was touching on a place in Timothy’s heart that was profoundly broken.

How many are there in our church, in our community, with hearts wounded and broken by their fathers? Wounds delivered in childhood will last a lifetime, unless someone comes along and administer the medicine of Christ. Did Jesus not come to bind up the broken hearted (Isaiah 61:1)? So too are you called to bind up the broken hearted, just as Paul does for Timothy in these three deeply personal verses.

If you are one with a heart that bears wounds from your father, listen to me now. The words Paul wrote to Timothy are written in parallel to the church – to you. From Romans 8:

¹⁴For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

³¹What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

³³Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

            If you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ, trusting in him for life, obeying his words, then you are a child of God. Our Heavenly Father looks upon you, he sees your wounds, he sees your failures, he sees your struggles; and he loves you, he loves you, he loves you! You are his beloved son or daughter and nothing in all creation will separate you from his love! If God is for you, who can be against you?!

          If you do not know God as your Father, then tune your heart to these words: Only Jesus can bind up your broken heart. Only he can give rest to your soul. Only he can satisfy your endlessly thirst heart. Only Jesus can reconcile you to the Father. Come to Jesus and be adopted by the Father!

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?                                     -Romans 8:32

The Father has given you his Son. How will he not also graciously give you all things? Romans 8 contains God’s healing words to wounded, embattled, and broken hearts. Meditate upon them. Treasure them.

Similarly, Paul’s words to Timothy are meant to have a powerful healing effect. Indeed, hearts are healed and strengthened when we encourage one another. Then Paul moves from his words of encouragement and healing to words of exhortation and instruction: to fan into flame the fires of faith.

Read vs 6-7

Because Timothy has sincere faith, he is to fan into flame the gift of God. Because of the parallels to Romans 8, because of words Paul uses in Galatians and 1 Corinthians, the gift that Timothy receives is the Holy Spirit, particularly how the Holy Spirit has empowered Timothy as an evangelist.

Back in 1 Timothy 4:14, Paul talked about this moment of laying on of hands. It was not that Paul was channeling the Holy Spirit, but that he and the elders of the church were publicly confirming God’s gift given to Timothy: the indwelling Holy Spirit empowering him for evangelism.

But notice how though Timothy has received this incredible gift, he is not to sit idle, to be a passive recipient of his gift. He is to fan that gift into flame.

I’ve built countless fires in the backcountry. They cannot be left alone. They need constant attention, especially when they are young. You get down on your hands and your knees, in the dirt, and you blow into the embers – the flames jump. But the flames don’t stay like that. Fire needs more breath, more wind, more fuel. If you stop giving the fire what it needs, it does not go on burning steadily. It dies.

It is crazy so many Christians neglect the fires of their faith. Rarely do they crack open their Bibles, they never meditate on God’s word, their prayer life is meager at best, they serve the church only when it is fun or convenient; and these people act confused as to why their faith is so weak. What fire do you expect when you do nothing to fan its flame? Meanwhile you’re drowning in screentime and comforts.

Christian, the Holy Spirit dwells in you! You have been given gifts to serve the church and advance the kingdom. Christ has made you a light in this world. There is a fire in your heart from heaven that should be blazing, setting the dead kindling of earth to wildfire!

Fan into flame the gift of God! Fan into flame the fires of your faith!

Read vs 7

The Spirit of the Living God dwells within you. The Spirit who created, who breathes life into all things, the Spirit who makes mighty the weak and wise the foolish, that same Spirit dwells within you. And you have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power and love and self-control.

Christian, are you fearful? Are you plagued by anxieties? Do you think you could never tell a stranger about Jesus, you could never confront the sins of your friend, you could never give up your pleasures to follow Jesus?

That is not the Spirit you have been given. Fan into flame the fires of your faith!

The Spirit you have been given is powerful! He will embolden you to share the gospel. He will strengthen you to follow Jesus even if it means a cross. He will give life to your words in ways you never could. He will electrify your life with a heavenly current that would transform your dull existence with the brilliance of Christ! The Spirit within you is powerful!

The Spirit you have been given is love! He will fill your judgmental and critical heart with compassion and understanding. He will take your wounded and broken heart, and flood it with his love. He will cause rivers of living water to flow from that once wounded heart. He will cause even the stoniest hearts to be softened by his love flowing through your heart. The Spirit you have been given is love!

The Spirit you have been given is self-control! He will give you the strength not to visit that site again, not to take that drink, not to weaponize your words, not to waste more time. He will change the desires of your heart to things far better. Bit by bit, he will drag you away from the sins that have so ensnared you. The Spirit you have been given is self-control!

But I remind you, fan into flame the gift you have been given! The gift, the Holy Spirit, is a person. Relationships need attention, much like a fire does. Spend time in his word; hear from him. Spend time in prayer; talk to him. Spend time meditating on Scripture; thinking about God. Spend time serving the church; learning to love what he loves. Spend time fanning into flame the fires of your faith, and your spirit will burn with the Holy Spirit’s power, love, and self-control.

Head: You are not meant to receive God’s gift with idleness. Like an unattended fire, your faith will smolder if you do nothing to fan it into flame.

Heart: Do you want a burning heart? Scripture, prayer, and church engagement sets hearts to fire, sets faith ablaze.

Hands: Is there someone younger than you in the faith? Encourage them. Is there someone with a wounded heart? Lovingly apply the balm of Scripture. Fathers, mothers, make sure your children know your love for them.