“Rekindle the Gift” 2014
2 Timothy 1:1-7,14 2 Corinthians 4:1-7

It was a vicious attack on the Apostle Paul.
It wasn’t persecution and threats coming from the Romans,
but from within the Church, from other Christians…
… who opposed Paul’s teachings about God’s grace.

For us to understand the teachings and writings of Paul,
we begin with his background, his education and experience,
for those all helped form and define his perspective
and his tight focus on the gift of God’s grace.

Saul, later renamed Paul, was raised in an observant,
strict and obedient-to-the-Book Jewish tradition,
that included all the religious rules and rituals.
He was trained and educated as a Pharisee to concentrate
on doing “religion well” to please and honor God.

He was deeply committed to his Jewish religious heritage,
and fought hard against the earliest followers of Christ,
in an attempt to keep Judaism pure and undefiled…
… even holding the coats of the men who stoned Stephen,
the first Christian martyr mentioned in the Bible.








Everything about his background and education
told him that the way to please and be acceptable to God
was spelled out in Scripture, in the Law…
…the religious rules, rituals & traditions of his Jewish heritage…

… and anything else was an unthinkable corruption;
so those who followed this Jesus of Nazareth
had to be stopped and that movement wiped out.

As a young Pharisee and fervent Jewish leader,
the Temple authorities sent “Saul” to Damascus,
with authority to disrupt the Christians living there
to arrest and bring the church leaders back in chains.

But along the way, on the road to Damascus,
Saul encountered Jesus in a bright and blinding light,
and that encounter with Christ changed everything
that he thought he knew about God
and what was pleasing and acceptable to God.

It has been my privilege to be with a number of persons,
at that amazing moment when something clicks inside
and they first felt the grasp of God’s gracious love,
and the Gospel about Jesus connects and makes sense…








… and then, everything they’ve ever known
is seen through that new lens and faith perspective,
as the Holy Spirit and God’s grace takes hold of them…
* … and no doubt you have a story of your own journey of faith.

For Paul, the Damascus road was such a life-redefining experience.
His background and his education had once assured him
that faithfulness to God meant carefully following
all the rules and rituals of his Jewish traditions.

But his encounter with Jesus on the road showed him
that instead, salvation is a gracious gift from God,
accomplished entirely through Jesus Christ,
and our best efforts don’t and can’t earn any of it.

So instead of trying harder to climb the ladder of Jewish law,
Christianity is about riding the elevator of God’s grace…
* … and there is no greater
or more profound life-changing truth that we can ever know.

The primary focus, and the foundation of all Paul’s writings,
is that we are healed, restored and saved from our sin
entirely by the gracious love of God in Jesus Christ,
and not by our good works or religious rituals…







… or as Paul would write in Ephesians, 2:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—

The road to Damascus was also the Apostle Paul’s call to ministry.
From there he went to Corinth to proclaim the Gospel,
and then he spent a couple of years teaching new believers
and organizing the Corinthians into a being church…
… and the power of God’s grace
and the Holy Spirit were active and transforming lives.

But after Paul had moved on to start new churches elsewhere,
other Christian leaders and teachers came to Corinth,
many from Jerusalem, to build on the Apostle’s work.

These were mostly Jewish people, converts to Christianity
who still followed the rules and rites of Judaism,
and who opposed Paul’s teachings about salvation,
that we are saved by faith, by God’s grace alone.

2nd Corinthians is the Apostle’s letter back to that church
trying to answer their questions and objections,
trying to explain his teaching about God’s grace.









For Paul, after his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus,
the Apostle was absolutely confident of God’s truth and call
despite all the resistance and attacks against him;
so he writes, vs. 1
Therefore, since it is by God’s mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do not lose heart.

Paul’s whole life and his understanding of God
were forever changed when he experienced God’s mercy,
which changed the way he read and understood the Law,
and his whole sense of how God relates to humankind.

His focus was no longer on himself or his good & religious deeds.
He wasn’t focused on what other people said about him,
or even on his suffering or situation in life.
Paul’s life was about responding to the mercy and grace of God,
to the gift & power of the Holy Spirit living in us to guide us,
… which he explains in , vs. 7
But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.

That is a wonderful picture of who we are, as the children of God,
as it points back to the creation story of Genesis 2:7
then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.







The idea is that God has placed
a treasure of extraordinary value and worth in each of us,
that doesn’t come from us, but as a blessing from God.

So despite whatever challenge or trouble we may face,
by faith we do not lose heart, courage or strength,
but can follow and serve our Savior in faithfulness…
* … for just as God saves us, so too by grace God sustains us.

The image Paul uses
is wonderfully descriptive of God’s purpose and grace…

… that Almighty God stoops down, scoops up some mud and clay,
and forms each of us from the dust of the ground,
breathing life into us as living earthen vessels,
and then placing in each of us a priceless treasure.

It’s a treasure, no less than the gracious love & presence of God
making us containers of God’s Spirit, love and compassion,
capable of reflecting & proclaiming God’s mercy & love,
by sharing God’s grace by serving others in need…
* … The work of God’s grace, the treasure in us, entrusted to us by God.










That is the hope and sense of grace that sustains Paul,
so that he can endure, and so he doesn’t lose heart…

… for his confidence is not in himself or his situation,
but in God, who will always sustain him
even in prison while facing his own death.

That is the context of 2nd Timothy, as Paul writes from prison
to encourage young Timothy along his pastoral journey.

While Scripture doesn’t tell us all the details,
we know that Timothy did have some health problems,
and Christians were being threatened and persecuted.
Some favored compromising God’s truth to get along with culture,
and Timothy was dealing with church conflict and strife.
That was a lot for a young pastor to face.

The Apostle was nearing the end of his life and ministry.
He wanted to pass along what long experience has taught him,
and to guide Timothy for the challenges and rigors ahead.

In chapter four of 2nd Timothy Paul explains his context, vs. 6-7
As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.







These are not words of sorrow or regret.
There’s no sense of fear or dread, bitterness or loss.
Paul has given it his faithful best, his all.
Looking back over his life, accomplishments and ministry,
he’s not troubled by his situation or afraid,
for he’s been faithful and served with integrity.

Do you hear the power of integrity, vs. 7 ---- I have kept the faith.
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race.

It is from that perspective that Paul explains his final lesson
as he seeks to help Timothy live out his sense of call,
by reminding him as his friend and mentor of who he is, his heritage, and that he was called-chosen by God.

Paul notes that Timothy’s faith came through
the godly influence of his mother and grandmother,
and so he has that heritage upon which to build. vs. 5
I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.

As an aside, let us remember to thank God
for those whose faithful example contributed to our faith,
and ask, what do we contribute to the faith of others.








Paul reminds Timothy, he was called and equipped by God to serve,
entrusted with gifts a signs of God’s great love for him,
and endorsed by Paul with the laying on of his hands.
vs. 6-7
For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.

Perhaps with all the struggle, opposition and conflict,
Timothy is discouraged, his fervor has cooled a bit,
and so Paul reminds him of his faith-blessings,
his experiences and heritage as a Christian…

… and that he has every reason
to be bold and confident in the Lord,
and to use his gifts with great joy and passion,
for the Holy Spirit is present to help him.

Therefore, Paul writes, vs. 14
Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.











I believe that is the same message that we need to hear,
as hope and encouragement
to present ourselves, our gifts and God’s blessings
in joyful and grateful service to the Lord…
… which I see as three steps along our spiritual journey.

1st – Let's get passionate about our relationship with God.

No more lukewarm, empty ritual, or less that our best effort,
nor just going through the motions of an external faith.

God hates hypocrisy and cynicism, and it’s such a waste
not to let God's Spirit fill and transform our whole being,
not to let God's power have full reign in our lives.

There is no need to be afraid of our God who so deeply loves us,
who blesses and transforms us, as we let the Spirit work in us.

Let us truly commit ourselves to seeking to know God better:
with more time spent in prayer, time spent in the Word,
committing ourselves to regularity in worship
and serving, active as a part of this fellowship.

2nd – Don't put off changes that we know we need to make in life.








3rd – Be doing something useful and meaningful to serve God now-
earnestly seek to discern, develop and offer our gifts.

There is something significant God is calling each of us to do;
and nothing in this life will ever be more satisfying
then doing whatever it is that God has designed us to do.

Surely the best way to value our days is to use them more wisely
and to get busy using whatever life and time we have left,
and to use our lives and opportunities as well as we can.

Even if we haven't always been faithful in reflecting God's love
we can still make changes and try to do better,
for its not too late – it’s never too late
to let God's love shine more brightly through us.
Our God is a God of gifts, grace and second chances, who uses
even our flaws and mistakes to accomplish astonishing things.

Therefore, as Paul urges and encourages us in his letters,
(1 Tim. 4:14, 2 Tim. 1:6, 2 Cor. 4:1 )
Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you … I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you… since it is by God’s mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do not lose heart.