Reliable Men

[A Spiritual MVP]

2 Timothy 2:1-7

Key Verse 2:1

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” 

Last Sunday the Indiana Colts won the NFL Superbowl XLI. After winning the game, Tony Dungy, the coach for the Indiana Colts, waded through the mob on the soggy field until he found his quarterback, Peyton Manning, the MVP of the day, and gave him a big hug.

In the passage for today the Apostle Paul is writing an epistle to Timothy. Obviously, Paul expects Timothy to be a fruitful servant of God, a spiritual MVP. Just as a football coach expects his team members to do an excellent job and score many touchdowns, so also the Apostle Paul is sharing with Timothy all secrets of how to operate as a fruitful gospel worker. In this passage Paul shares five fundamentals on how to produce good fruit for the Lord. 

First, be strong in the grace that is in Jesus Christ.  

Look at verse 1. “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” This verse sets forth the first secret one must hold onto: that is, to be strong and to remain strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Like the quarterback of a football team, a shepherd must remain strong 24/7. It has been said, “Of all the occupations, the hardest occupation is that of a shepherd (or a pastor).” Thus far the Apostle Paul pioneered many churches throughout the Roman Empire. He then appointed Timothy to take care of the flock. This meant that Timothy would go through many difficulties and challenges. What Timothy needed most was strength. A weak person will never be able to meet the challenges and discharge the duties and responsibilities of a leader. How then can a man as timid as Timothy become strong? How can he stand up against all the enemies that are bound to arise? Paul answers the question in verse 1. “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” The secret is to feed on the grace that is in Christ Jesus. What is so special about the grace that is in Christ Jesus? What is in this grace that causes a man to be strong? We find an answer to this question in the Apostle Paul’s other epistles including Ephesians. In Ephesians 1:7, for example it reads, “In him [Jesus Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace [that is in Jesus]”. Here “redemption” has the meaning of “recovery” or “restoration.” In Jesus, God worked to recover what we have lost, and thus restore us back to our original position in which we (the human race) used to live before the Fall. Due to the Fall, man lost his connection to God the Father. Having eaten the forbidden fruit, Adam lost in himself many good qualities such as soundness of spirit, mind, and body and the capability to control himself and his environment. He even lost the desire and willpower to come out from hiding behind the tree to ask God for forgiveness and restoration.   

“Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” God sent Jesus to look for what was lost.  Jesus came to find souls that are lost. Upon finding a lost sheep, Jesus puts him in his sheep pen. Then he nurtures him until he becomes whole. When this happens to you, then you are no longer a weak person; you have become a strong child of God; you are sound, steady, and solid in your in mind, spirit, and character. 

Jesus changes people through his blood, through the forgiveness of sins. The phrase “through his blood” can be paraphrased as, “through his love which is unfathomably great, far greater, higher, wider, and broader than we can possibly imagine.” The term “forgiveness of sins” [notice the word ‘sins which is plural] has to do with all the failures of a man – past, present, and future failures – [not a failure, but failures, not one or two, but “all” of them] the memory as well as the traces of which God chose to “wipe out” for those who are in Jesus Christ, so that you who believe in Jesus Christ would be like a brand new machine, a man with no defects whatsoever,  so that you would function as a real human being – the crown of creation - as beautiful as you were originally created to function. Recently I bought a lawnmower at a garage sale for $10. The man said, “It works just fine.” But when I tried to use it, it wouldn’t start. So I took it to a repair man, and he charged me $30 - three times as much as I paid to buy it. It is not cheap to fix up get even a simple machine like a lawnmower.  

But human being is the most sophisticated machine, a billion times more sophisticated than a lawnmower. And it is not cheap to fix a man: but God paid the cost. He spent the blood of Jesus.

“Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” There are countless people who, after tasting the riches of the grace that is in Jesus, were able to overcome all of their weaknesses, character flaws and sin problems. They then became men of great character, strong and sound in their spirit, mind, and body. The Apostle Paul is a good example. Before he tasted Jesus’ grace he lived as a wounding machine. With his brilliant mind, and with misdirected zeal and willpower, he found fault with every one, especially Christians. Like a hissing snake, he worked relentlessly to arrest and throw them into jail. It has been said what you do reflects who you are. Indeed, Paul became a trouble maker, because he himself was troubled inside. What was the problem? Paul’s confession in Romans 7 answers the question. In his innermost being, he desired to keep his house in order by doing everything right. But his efforts to keep his inner person in order were frustrated again and again; despite his super human efforts, he was not able to resist the devil’s temptations, especially his covetous desires. The Risen Jesus had mercy on him. In his great mercy, Jesus saved him out of trouble. Jesus sent him shepherds like Ananias and Barnabas. Then in Jesus, Paul gained momentum – the power of redemption. And he became a different person. He was no longer violent; he became a gentle person. He became an apostle of love. In love he worked hard to share the gospel which brings healing from above. Thanks to the grace he found in Jesus, Paul became one of the great spiritual MVP’s in Christian history. .  

Second, entrust to reliable men who also can be qualified to teach others.

The second point for a man aiming to become an MVP in the arena of the spiritual super-bowl is this: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” 

It has been said that God’s purpose of salvation for each individual is universal. This means that God saves you, not just for you, but for all peoples on earth. In other words, God has saved you in order to save all peoples on earth through you. We find this universal purpose in the words of God when he called one person Abram: “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing…and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:2-3  

Practically, however, it sounds impossible for one person to become a source of blessing for all peoples on earth. How is this possible? The Apostle Paul answers the question in verse 2. “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” What Paul is saying is this: Jesus put the gospel under Paul’s care. Paul then went out and diligently shared the gospel with many. Now Paul is entrusting the gospel to the care of Timothy. And Paul urges Timothy to go out and find reliable men, and share the gospel with them, so that they too can be qualified to teach others. The idea here is a Christian producing a Christian, or a producer producing a producer, who then produces another producer. As this process continues, the number of saved souls will keep multiplying, and in this way one person can literally become a source of blessing for all peoples on earth. 

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” At first glance, this command seems applicable to those who are already well established like a man who has graduated from a divinity school. But let us not forget that the Apostle Paul issued this command to young Timothy. In addition, the task Paul is asking is not for someone special to do something special. Anyone who has received the grace of God can practice what Paul is asking. Notice that Paul is not asking us to do something that requires super-human effort. All Paul is asking us to do is to find reliable men (which simply means someone whose faith in the Lord has proven genuine), and pass onto that person what we have heard from our spiritual predecessors. Lately, Brother Greg is setting a good example. Through one-on-one Bible studies with Missionary Philip, he has received God’s grace. Then he went out to find Bible students on campus. God blessed him with Bible students. He is yet to discern how many of them are “reliable”. If he finds any of them to be “reliable”, he can then entrust the gospel to them, so that they too would be qualified to teach others. 

Third, endure hardship like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

The third principle is found in verses 3-4. “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer.” In this passage Paul likens a Christian to a soldier. As a soldier is involved in a war, so a Christian is involved in constant spiritual warfare. The enemy, Satan, and all of his agents are fighting fiercely against the Lord’s army. As a spiritual soldier serving in the Lord’s army, Timothy must learn to endure hardship like a good solider. He should not get involved in civilian affairs such as partying or daydreaming.  , 

Another important point which makes a Christian into “good” soldier is this: he wants to please his commanding officer. Christian means a man who belongs to Jesus Christ. As such, his loyalty is given to one person, and one person only, that is, Jesus Christ. In all he does, he desires to please Jesus Christ, the commanding officer. 

Practically however it was not going to be easy for Timothy to become a good soldier. At the outset of the epistle, Paul described Timothy as a man of many tears. This is both a good point and a bad point. It is a good because it indicates that Timothy had a pure heart. But it is also a sign of mental weakness, so that when a bully rises up against him, instead of confronting the bully to repent and obey Jesus, Timothy might chicken out, find a hole to hide in, and ever come out. 

In the same way, with human kindness it is easy for us to butter up our Bible students and flatter them when in fact Jesus wants us to correct, rebuke, and then encourage them. On the other hand in the name of pleasing Jesus, one may be tempted to show disrespect to those who are above him or fail to co-work with fellow soldiers. One is prone to commit sins like this if, under the guise of pleasing Jesus, he is in fact is pleasing his own selfish ego. One way to overcome errors like this is to consider the kind of commander we have. We have Jesus who is totally humble, a Savior who is full of grace and full of truth.     

Fourth, an athlete who competes for the victor’s crown

Now let us read verse 5. “Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules.” 

Here Paul likens a fruitful Christian to an athlete competing to win the victor’s crown. Who can win the victor’s crown? The one who completes according to the rules can. Here, “rules” refer to the principles by which an athlete is disciplined, and the rules by which he competes for the crown. For any athlete who competes in any sport like the Marathon, wrestling, or football, there are always rules for disciplining and the rules by which the athlete competes. Christians are the same. In order for a Christian to score spiritual touchdowns (i.e., saving souls), one must go through strict discipline including self-denial, taking up one’s cross, and following Jesus. In saving souls, one must also develop discipline in all aspects of ministry, particularly in regard to one’s personal life of prayer and Bible study. 

For any device like a cell phone, the manufacturer provides the consumer with a manual. Nowadays they make cell phones that are so sophisticated that the manual is virtually a book. In the case of a man serving the Lord’s ministry, we too should anticipate that the rules may not be as simple as we think. To make the job easier, the Lord God provided us with a rule book called the Bible. The call for a spiritual athlete to complete according to the rules is a call for us to become familiar with the rule book called the Bible. So let us pray to keep our Bibles close and read them with due diligence. 

Fifth, a hardworking farmer

Lastly look at verse 6. “The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.” Here again the Apostle Paul likens a Christian to a farmer. A farmer works to produce crops such as wheat or rice. Likewise Christians are working to reap a spiritual harvest of people from this dying world. A farmer has to work hard on a farm in cultivating soil, sowing seeds, fertilizing, watering, weeding, or winnowing. Similarly in order for a God’s servant to reap a spiritual harvest in a mission field, he has to work hard in all aspects of spiritual farming, such as praying, feeding, counseling, rebuking, correcting, encouraging, and much more. Then what Psalm 126:5 says will come true for him, that is, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” When Jesus comes again, he will commend this servant and say, “Well done my good servant. Come and share your master’s happiness.” (Matthew 25:23)

Conclusion: In this passage the Apostle Paul shared a few principles for Timothy to keep in mind to bear good fruit for Jesus’ glory. May the Lord bless us to reflect on them so that the Lord will enable us to bear the kind of fruit he has in mind.

One word: Reliable men

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