Commencement (2 Timothy 4:1-8)

Finishing well

“Never be discouraged. Never hold back. Give everything you’ve got.”

Denzel Washington, UPenn, 2011.

“I can’t wait to see everything you can achieve in the years ahead.”
Michelle Obama, King’s College Prep High School, Chicago, 2015.

“Stay hungry. Stay foolish.”

Steve Jobs, Stanford, 2005.

Words that prepare us; words that inspire us to face the challenges ahead; to pursue our true potential. That’s what we expect from commencement speeches by pop stars and prime ministers. Words that we can live by.

We get something quite different from the Apostle Paul. There is no podium. No crowds. Instead we get words written by a man condemned to die.

In his commencement speech, the Apostle Paul says:

I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith.
2 Timothy 4:7

You see, Paul does not focus on how we start but on how we finish. His words help us to end well.

Three points for tonight. What, Why and How. As you are packing your suitcase one last time and trying to fit three years of stuff into thirty kilograms to bring on that flight home, you might pick up each item and ask: What is this thing? Why am I lugging it all the way home? And how is it going to of any use back in Malaysia/Singapore/Hong Kong?

Tonight, I offer you one extra thing to squeeze into your spiritual suitcase to lug home. It is Paul’s reminder to keep the faith. What we are doing tonight is asking these three questions - What is it? Why should we make space for it? And how will it make a difference in the days to come.

1. What

Firstly, what does it mean to end well; to keep the faith? It’s means living to speak the gospel. It means giving your life to speak the gospel.

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word.

2 Timothy 4:1-2a

Here is a command for pastors. When a new minister is ordained, you read this text; you give this command: Preach the Word. At which point, most of us are thinking, “I’m glad I’m not a pastor!”

The reason why Paul begins so seriously with, “In the presence of God,” is because the guy he is speaking to is thinking, “I will never be a pastor like Paul.”

Timothy is less experienced and less respected than Paul. And yet, here at the end of the apostle’s life, Paul hands the reins over to this young man. Not to Peter. Not to Apollos nor Barnabas. But to young Timothy.

And what Paul does is remind him of the power and presence of God’s Word. “From infancy,” he says in Chapter 3, verse 15, “you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God”  - so that you - “may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Timothy, this Word is powerful! It is powerful to save you. It is powerful to prepare you. So, preach this Word.

All of his life, others have spoken God’s Word to him. Now, it’s Timothy’s turn to speak God’s Word to others.

What about you?

Three years of CF, of attending CG. On top of this, the crazy ones went for FOCUS, Friday afternoon talks, CICCU Central, student lunches; not to mention Houseparty and Word Alive.

What has God been doing these three years? He has been pouring his Word into you to save you and prepare you. Not to be the next Apostle Paul (or the next John Piper, or whoever!). But to be just as faithful as Paul; just as focussed on the gospel.

For some of us, it might mean full-time ministry - teaching God’s word full-on; full-time. But for all of us, it simply means being prepared. As Paul puts it, “in season and out of season.” God may not call you to be a pastor but I promise you that He will call you speak the gospel at a time that will be neither convenient nor comfortable.

And being prepared simply means saying, “Yes, Lord,” when that happens.

“In season and out of season.” It means, not restricting God’s word to Sunday mornings or Friday evenings at bible study. It means you are ready to respond with the gospel on the plane journey back home. Not putting it off (“Maybe another day”) or passing the buck (“I’ll get my pastor to talk to him”) But, at times, simply saying, “I will try.”

So firstly, what does it mean to keep the faith? It’s more than believing the gospel. It means living to speak the gospel. Taking every opportunity to speak about Jesus.

2. Why?

Secondly, why bother? Or, why should this concern you? Paul gives us a negative and a positive answer.

The negative is found in verse 3.

For the time will when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.

2 Timothy 4:3

The number one question I get from students returning home is: Which church do I join? Answer: A church that loves Jesus and loves the bible. Not an easy thing but an obvious thing. It is obvious when a church loves Jesus. In the same way, it is obvious when a Christian loves Jesus and is constantly speaking about Christ. Find a church that loves Jesus and loves talking about Jesus.

But there is an even more important question that verse 3 tries to answer: What if this ideal church stops being ideal? What is their love starts to wane?

The church in Ephesus was planted by Paul and now pastored by Timothy. It was home to Apollos, a famous preacher (the Don Carson of his day). The Apostle John was there as well, another big name. And in the book of Revelation, the risen Christ addresses the church in Ephesus as the first of the seven churches in Chapters 2 and 3. In other words, this was a church with a reputation. “Come to my church, our pastor, Paul, wrote most of the bible!”

But things had changed. There was false teaching. Members were arguing and gossipping and fighting with one another. And what does Paul tell Timothy to do? Stay. “Stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer.” (1 Timothy 1:3)

Stay. Not jump ship. Not start another church down the road. But stay and remind them of the gospel. Stay and teach them to love the gospel.

That’s the negative reason. Things are going to get tough but that’s why you need to stay put. Maybe the reason why God has put you in that less than ideal church situation so that you can be loving when others are unloving, so that you can be faithful when others have been unfaithful. So that, in time they will learn to love Jesus again.

That is an important to keep in mind, if you are serving as a bible study leader, as a Sunday School teacher, as a pastor in your church: Don’t serve God for man’s applause. You will have to “tan koo koo,” (Hokkien: Wait Long Long).

“They will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” False teachers will always be popular. They will always be in demand. They will not thank you for preaching the gospel, Timothy. But keep on keeping on.

That’s the negative reason. But there is a positive, and that’s verse 8; what Paul calls “the crown of righteousness.”

Now, there is in store for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day - and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing.

2 Timothy 4:8

Paul is saying, there is another graduation, another degree that he is looking forward to. One that Jesus will award to him with honours. Not only to him, but to all who look forward to Jesus’ return.

Paul was a smart guy. Back in the day, he had the qualifications, the charisma to really make it in life; to be the top Pharisee in his community. Yet his uni friends would be looking at Paul right now, and saying, “What happened to that guy? He’s in prison. He has no money.”

“What a waste.”

Paul would answer with the words of Philippians 3:

But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.

Philippians 3:7-8

Christ is my treasure. Now, when I have forsaken all other treasures - career and comfort. Yet there will come a day, when even my most critical opponents will not be able to deny: God is no one’s debtor. He will grant me the crown of righteousness. He will make all my sacrifices seem like a nothing.

Not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing. What are you living for? Live for Him. If Christ is King, he holds all the crowns. If Christ is Lord, his approval is the only one we need. Live for Him and for His glory alone.

3. How

Finally, how: How do we apply this when we back home in a new place, new job, new church? How do we keep the faith?

But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

2 Timothy 4:5

Be steady. Get the job done. Not revolutionary. Not rocket science. Kinda boring. Keep calm and get the job done.

Now, Paul actually says this a couple of times in 2 Timothy. He says: The world around you is going to lose control but you need to stay in control. Everyone else will go crazy; but you? Keep calm.

We see this at the beginning of Chapter 3 where Paul says:

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.

2 Timothy 3:1-4

Things will go from bad to worse.

While evil men and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

2 Timothy 3:13

But as for you, Timothy…

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it.

2 Timothy 3:14

Paul compares and contrasts: What the world will do; and how Timothy should respond. The world will lose control, You, Timothy, must keep calm. So, there must be a difference. But what is this difference?

We tend to think, the difference is bad behaviour and good behaviour. In some senses, that is true. “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, arrogant,” while Timothy is urged to pursue “righteousness, faith, love and peace” (2 Timothy 2:22). But that’s not the biggest difference. It’s not simply that they will do evil while you should try to do good.

No, the biggest difference is that they will move further and further away from the truth, but you must remain in the truth. You see, after Paul lists that long string of evil thoughts and actions at the beginning of Chapter 3 - without love, unforgiving, ungrateful, treacherous, slanderous, brutal and so on - he sums it up in in verse 5 with this description:

Having a form of godliness but denying its power.

2 Timothy 3:5

Despite all their evil thoughts and actions, they appear godly. They have a form of godliness. What do you call this? It is looking good while doing evil. In this day and age, we have become experts at looking good while getting away with all kinds of evil.

Furthermore, Paul describes them in verse 7, as:

Always learning, but never able to acknowledge the truth.

2 Timothy 3:7

They turn up for bible study but they have never turned to God in repentance. They come to CF. But they have never come to Jesus. It’s scary. Because Paul is saying, evil men don’t look evil. They might look quite good.

No, friends the biggest difference is not simply that they do evil and we need to do good things. The biggest difference is they deny the truth, they wander away from the truth (2 Timothy 2:17), they deny the truth (2 Timothy 3:7) and they oppose the truth (2 Timothy 3:8).

But you, Timothy, need to keep trusting in the truth of the gospel.

Last year, my bible study group did a Skype call to a brother in South Korea. He did his PhD and went home, got involved with his church and even started a new ministry among students on his campus. Everyone wanted to know, “What’s your secret?” and he was confused. Specifically, he was asked, “How are things different now that you have left Cambridge and gone home?” His honest answer was, “Nothing.”

He wasn’t being humble or dismissive. Rather, he was merely doing the very same things he did as a student in Cambridge. He went to bible study. He served in church. And now that he was back home, he continued doing the exact same things.

Paul says, “Continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of.” The gospel you have heard and put your trust in here in Cambridge is the same gospel you need to hold on to and keep trusting in back in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. It is the gospel that has saved you in Jesus. It is the gospel that has prepared you to serve Him wherever he leads you.

Some of you are not Christians and you have been joining us at CF and hearing this message again and again. And God has been repeating this same message again and again. Jesus really is the King. He died on the cross, taking all your sin upon himself. He rose so that you might have new life in Him. There are no hidden extras for you to find out. What you have never done is actually respond to this message you have heard again and again. Perhaps God is saying to you tonight, “Don’t put it off. What else do you need to know except what you have heard in the message of the gospel?” Jesus is Lord. I am sinful. Please forgive me, change me and give me new life.

Conclusion: Nostalgia and amnesia

The message is the same for the Christians here tonight. God has given us everything we need in the gospel to be faithful and to be holy - not to be happy and successful - but to be faithful to him and to live for his glory. Don’t leave the gospel behind. Make sure it is with you wherever you go in every season of your life.

I met a former CF-er just a couple of weeks ago at a baptism. It is a great encouragement to me personally to see a brother still continuing on trusting in Jesus, still continuing on serving Jesus, years after leaving Cambridge. He reminded me of a talk I had given once and I’d like to share the conclusion with you tonight.

It’s about nostalgia. The memories we make here in Cambridge are special and the moments are significant. We rightly want to hold on to them and treasure these memories we have shared with our brothers and sisters in CF.

Inevitably, many CF-er’s do come back to visit to relive those memories. They want to go punting. They want to visit their old church. They even want to see Henry Martyn’s picture again hanging at the back of the hall. And they say to me, “How good was it back in the day! Ten, fifteen years ago, we really heard God’s voice. Ten, fifteen years ago, we were on fire for Jesus!”

When I hear that - I know what they mean; they mean that God was so gracious in using the CF, using StAG and Eden, using the friends they made here to impact the gospel on their lives. Yet, a part of me goes, “Really? The last time you heard God’s voice truly and most clearly was ten, fifteen years ago?” Friends, God is the same God, here or in Malaysia or in Singapore and he speaks to us clearest in the message of his Son, whether it is preached here or in Malaysia or in Singapore. If you told me, after ten years, that the best sermon you ever heard was here in Cambridge, or even here in CF, it would break my heart.

Don’t let spiritual nostalgia turn into spiritual amnesia.

The Apostle Paul wants us not simply to start well but to finish well. To be able to one day say, with honesty and confidence, that we have fought the good fight, that we have finished the race. That we have kept the faith.

It is more than believing the gospel, it is living every day ready to speak the gospel to others.

It is motivated not by human reward - applause, money, respect - but by our heavenly Judge who will judge the living and the dead, who, one day will say to us, “Good and faithful servant.”

God has given us everything we need to be faithful and to be holy in this life for Jesus’ glory. Keep trusting in Jesus. And never stop speaking about Jesus for his glory and his kingdom.

God gives the growth

“My grandpa grows watermelons,” said a five-year old to me recently over lunch at a holiday club for kids, “but it takes sooo long for it to grow!”

“Well, how old are you?” I asked.

“I am five years old,” he answered.

I said to him, “You’ve taken this long to grow this big. And you’re still growing!”

I told him that it is God who makes things grow. We can plant the fruit and make sure it gets enough water. But in the end, God gives the growth.

It is a simple lesson the bible teaches us - not about plants - but about people. Specifically, Paul uses this picture to explain how God grows his church.

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

1 Corinthians 3:5-7

I have been in Cambridge long enough to see some churches double and triple in size while some others have shrunken and now struggle to fill seats on Sundays.

At one time, the English congregation at the Chinese Church had a weekly attendance of four (including the speaker and the song-leader!). When a recent visitor remarked how much the ministry had grown since, I responded by recognising the faithfulness of the leaders back when times were lean that God was able to use to bless us now in times of plenty.

The point of these verses is not that we do nothing and wait for God to take care of everything. Indeed, what we can - and what we should - do is preach the gospel. Switching illustrations from planting to building, Paul says:

For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:9-11

Preaching the gospel gives God all the glory. The gospel lays the one foundation (there is no other) of Jesus Christ - crucified for our sins; risen for our justification. We are God’s workers. The church is God’s field. The message is God’s gospel.

When times are lean, we preach Jesus. When times are a plenty, we preach Jesus. We continue planting and we continue watering. It is God who makes things grow.

Even a five year-old can understand that.

Preparing the next, next generation (2 Timothy 2:2)

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.
2 Timothy 2:2

I think it was almost ten years ago when a good friend sat me down and said, “Calvin, there are just so many good people this year. Maybe, next year.” He was talking about an internship for ministry at my church back home. It was a good church and a vibrant church. A mark of that vibrancy was a keen interest amongst its members to preach the gospel. And many pursued the opportunity to do this full-time. Praise God!

Ten years later, it is encouraging to see the same interest and opportunity reflected in the churches here in Cambridge – perhaps, even more so. Many students take a year out upon graduating from university, to join the staff of one of the local churches. It gives them a chance to explore the joys and hardships of ministry under the guidance and care of experienced Christian leaders. Perhaps the biggest advantage Cambridge uniquely offers is the training. The very best bible teaching is made available to interns through programmes like TEAM (Training in East Anglia Ministry) designed to teach its students how to handle the scriptures with care and to preach the gospel with clarity.

Yet spending the past five years in a Chinese Church has, I think, given me an added perspective on what it takes to raise and train leaders. What I mean is this: Here in the UK, ministry training is focussed on the individual. Courses like Christianity Explored and Alpha speak to the individual person – how he or she understands the world, God, sin, death, life – in light of the cross of Jesus Christ. Of course, following Jesus is a personal relationship with him as Saviour and Lord. But as a result, leaders are trained in the context of communicating the gospel to persons and individuals – One-to-one bible studies; Personal evangelism in the workplace and at dorms.

In contrast, Chinese Churches are community-based churches. They often begin as bible study groups among migrant families meeting in homes. Every meeting starts with a meal – every meeting (and it always must be Chinese food!) Eating is what you do in everyday life. Eating is what you do with your family. Here in the English-speaking congregation, I think I have met almost everyone’s dad or mum (or even their grandparents, aunts and uncles!). I’m not just talking about the young kids who grow up in church. Even the working adults bring their parents and relatives when they’re over for a visit. The Chinese Church is where you meet your son’s buddies; your daughters close friends.

So when it comes to the issue of leaders, people in the Chinese Church don’t just think, “How do we reach the next generation?” They’re asking “What about the next, next generation?” Meaning: they’re thinking about their kids. Not just their colleagues, their friends, the people in their community, other Chinese people – No, they’re thinking, “If I have a family and my children grow up here, what kind of church do I want this to be?” Not just the next generation. The next, next generation.

In this verse taken from 2 Timothy, the apostle Paul gives us insight into his strategy to reach and prepare the next, next generation. This is Paul’s last letter to Timothy; his last words of encouragement and advice to his good friend, partner in the gospel – his son in the faith. He tells Timothy, Be strong. Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:1). Keeping trusting in his grace, Tim. Jesus will keep you going. He will keep you faithful.

But here, Paul says to Timothy in verse 2, You need to do one more thing. Raise up leaders – or more specifically, raise up teachers. Leaders in the church lead through the authority of the word of God. They teach the scriptures. That is what you need to do, Timothy. That is what you need to teach these leaders to do well; so that they can teach others also.

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.
2 Timothy 2:2

These leaders have to be two things: faithful and able to teach – both men of character and capability. There has been some debate as to whether Paul meant just men exclusively – male leaders – or are women included in this assessment? I noticed that the recent NIV revision has “reliable people” in place of “reliable men”, and I think I agree (though, I’m still thinking about it) that at least here, Paul is using anthropois in such a way it could refer either to men or women. However, because of the recurring phrase “able to teach” found here and in 1 Timothy 3, where it is used specifically of male elders (it qualification is missing from requirements of deacons in the same passage; compare also Titus 1:9), I think Paul has a special eye on men who will take up positions of leadership in the church. The bible is clear that responsible and capable men are tasked with eldership and the public teaching of the scriptures.

The practical challenge is in identifying such men. Do exceptional gifts make the exceptional leader? Gifts are often easier to notice than character. If you are in a big church where many individuals are in active ministry and many are seeking opportunities of leadership – is it not easier to measure their qualification based on fruitfulness rather than faithfulness? Fruitfulness you can see – people, skills, success, results, response. Faithfulness takes time and discernment – patience, steadfastness, reliability, responsibility.

Obviously, we all want the guy who has both character and capability. Helpfully, Paul is specific about the form and faithfulness he is looking out for. It’s the gospel. It is the ability to handle and communicate the gospel effectively.

Meaning: Paul is not talking about the guy whom everyone says is really, really nice, good with kids, and always turns up early for prayer meetings. “Faithfulness” here has to do with the bible. He is entrusted with the very words of God. Will he be faithful in speaking the message of the bible; not his opinions, thoughts or musings. Will he preach that full gospel – not leaving out the hard bits. Will he put in the hard work of prayer and preparation. Is he faithful?

(As an aside, when Paul says “faithful”, he is obviously talking about a believer. It’s an obvious point, so obvious that we might foolishly take it for granted. Please make sure your leader is a Christian! A person needs to know the gospel in order to be faithful to the gospel!)

And Paul is also not talking about the scholar who can parse the Greek text and recite Deuteronomy from memory. “Able to teach” is a qualification we look for in Sunday School teachers. Can he tell us about Jesus in such a way that even kids understand him – and not have to bribe them every 5 minutes with Haribo.

You know, if I had to choose between two good potential leaders – both capable and both reliable – but one was slightly more loving and patient, while the other was slightly more experienced in bible-study – at the risk of being misunderstood – I would choose the bible-study leader. In the Chinese Church, I know the tendency is to go with the nice, reliable guy. That’s because we think, That’s the harder quality to come by. And I agree. It takes more time and love to shape a person’s character. But I would still go with the one with bible skills. Because the final criteria in choosing a leader is not the leader, but the gospel.

You see, the qualification that Paul outlines here in 2 Timothy, is not really in and of the candidate himself. Rather, it is an external qualification – the gospel. And his whole motivation of passing on this important instruction to Timothy to appoint leaders is not so much to ensure that the church will still be carrying on for another generation, or that Timothy won’t be going at it alone without adequate help and assistance. His single purpose is in making sure the gospel is preached.

Notice that Paul had already begun the process of preparing these leaders long before he wrote this letter. He says to Timothy, “Remember what you have heard me teach,” and then he adds the qualification, “in front of many witnesses”. This could either be a reference to a specific event where Paul preached in front of a crowd that can testify to his message. Or more likely I think, Paul is referring to his entire ministry of preaching, where he has proclaimed the same message about Jesus, again and again. And because he has preached this same message everywhere he went, many people can say, Yup, that was what Paul said about Jesus. He preached the cross. That’s Paul’s message.

And Paul is saying to Timothy, you too, heard this message of the gospel from my lips. Now, pass it on, he says. “Entrust” it to reliable men.

This means: while it is good to have structured classroom-based lectures, that go through the bible systematically verse by verse, topic by topic; and while it is an absolutely good idea to send pastors off to seminary in order for them to do this - Paul’s idea of training leaders is simply to preach the bible. He does this in a public setting (“in the presence of many witnesses”), meaning in the assembly of believers, as in a church gathering. But this must also include his preaching before unbelievers – which is mostly what Paul did in his ministry. He preached the gospel to those who had never heard of Jesus before.

And all this while, Paul brought Timothy along with him on his journeys to help him with his mission; but also to be a witness to his ministry. So that, Paul could one day say to Timothy, Remember. Remember this pattern of preaching the message of the cross, what I said, when I said it, how I communicated it – and pass it on to these leaders. If you are an existing leader, this means your first priority in raising leaders does not involve setting up a committee or getting someone to organise an evangelistic event. The most effect thing you could do is preach the gospel. When you open the scriptures and proclaim Christ clearly and powerfully, God will call men and women to do the same. You prepare new leaders in your church by preaching the gospel to your church.

One more thing: I said that this is Paul’s strategy for training not simply the next generation (Timothy), but the next, next generation (men who will teach others). So, Paul reminds Timothy of everything he has learnt. But then, he also tells Timothy, You have to pass this message on – in other words, you have to teach the gospel to others. But on top of this, Paul does one more thing. He says to Timothy, Teach this to others, in such a way, that they too are able to teach the gospel.

How do you do this? We have already seen that Paul leaves Timothy a pattern to follow – his own life and ministry centred round the message of Jesus Christ. In part, it means: we are always preaching the gospel to one another. Not just the pastor up front during the sermon, but even during the songs, for example. Everyone is singing about Christ, his redemption on the cross, God’s love displayed through his sacrifice (if we have chosen our songs wisely) – and we sing this to God, but also to one another. The people of God are perpetually “gospelling” to one another. This is one good, godly, biblical way of learning how to speak the gospel to one another.

But the focus in this verse is much, much more pointed. Paul uses the word “entrust” to describe the appointment of the leader. And what he is doing is making absolutely, crystal clear to the new leader what God is “entrusting” the leader with. It is the “good deposit” (1:14), the thing Timothy has heard Paul say in front of many witnesses (2:2) – it is the gospel (1:11-12). God is entrusting the leader with the weighty responsibility of preaching, teaching, speaking the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If your church were to advertise for a pastor, what would the job description say? When you interviewed the candidates, what would the one thing be that you are looking out for? And when you install and ordain a new vicar or elder – what is the one thing you would prayerfully ask God to empower this new leader to do for glory of his name?

Paul makes it clear to Timothy: impress upon them and remind them that their job is to do one thing, supremely above all other things: They must preach Christ! What are they entrusted with? The gospel. What is their chief responsibility? To proclaim the gospel! Why does he need to be reliable and able and trustworthy and godly? So that he will faithful in teaching the full message of the scriptures which point to the fulfilment of all God’s blessing in the one salvation that comes through Jesus Christ on the cross. They are entrusted with preaching the gospel!

And that, says Paul, is how you reach the next, next generation.

The power of God (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.

My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

We have been looking at the letter of 1 Corinthians this past month. And so far, chapter 1 can be summarised under two headings – the call of God and the wisdom of God.

The call of God

And I said that the call of God is first and foremost, not a call to do something, but to be in Christ. Often you’ll hear Christians use the word “call” in terms of doing something for God. “Are you called to serve in the children’s ministry? Is God calling you to be a missionary?” But in the bible, Jesus calls sinners – not the righteous – to be his followers and disciples. And here in chapter 1 verse 2, God calls the church be sanctified in Christ. It is a call to faith and repentance in Jesus.

Yes, I do believe in the importance of God’s calling and confirmation when pursuing ministry. But we are not saved through ministry. Rather, if we do not first answer God’s call to be in Christ, any call to serve Christ is meaningless and idolatrous. This is a sober reminder to those who have spent any length of time in leadership, in service of God and the church – leading bible study, playing music on Sundays – you are not saved through service, sacrifice, sincerity or even you suffering – but only through Christ by grace through faith alone.

We also saw how God uses this call to gather his church. As Christians respond to God’s call in repentance and trust in Jesus, so they are gathered into fellowship with Jesus. And it is this assembly; this gathering, that is what the New Testament calls the church.

Yes, Hebrews 12 does talk about the heavenly assembly –the true church in the presence of God – the heavenly Jerusalem where thousands of angels gather in joyful assembly. But this heavenly reality is mirrored here on earth through small, scattered groups of Christians, sometimes just a few in number. And these groups of Christians are what the New Testament means by the church. The church in Galatia, in Ephesus, in Thessalonica, in Corinth – Paul addresses each and every one of them, never as part of the wider church, but always individually as the church. So, you are the church. That means the guy in front of you, the bunch of jokers sitting behind you, yes even those noisy kids you can’t stand, next to you. Together in Christ, you are called the church.

The wisdom of God

Secondly, chapter 1 is also about the wisdom of God. And a couple of weeks ago, I said, “Look out for that big twist at the end of chapter 1.”

Paul begins verse 20 by issuing a challenge to the intellectuals of his day. Where is the wise man? Where is the philosopher? Where are the smart alecs and know-it-alls? (1:20)

Now remember, Paul was writing to Corinth, a city full of philosophers and wise guys. He could easily have been writing to Cambridge – with Richard Dawkins in the front row, together with Hitchens and Professor Hawking sitting next to him – those who are universally recognised as leading thinkers; experts in their fields.

And to all of them Paul says, “Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” (1:20) Meaning: God has ordained that the world cannot know him through its wisdom.

This is Paul’s version of Smack talk! Who da man! Who da man!

He’s just torn down the wisdom of the world. And yet, what you find in verse 30, is Paul saying something totally unexpected. Because there he says, “Jesus has become for us wisdom from God, - that is our righteousness, holiness and redemption.”

And remember I said, take notice of the hyphen! Because what Paul is saying is, Jesus is our wisdom – through which we receive righteousness, holiness and redemption.

What’s going on? Didn’t Paul just condemn wisdom? But now Paul is elevating Christ as true wisdom, as the gateway to salvation and all the blessings of salvation?

Paul is talking about salvation, yes, but he has been talking all this while about the message of salvation – the gospel. It is a message that has to be heard, to be understood.

He clarifies this later on, in Chapter 2 verse 6, where Paul says, “we do speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age, or of the rulers of this age.” We’ll pick that up in a couple of weeks. But today, we’re looking at the first five verses of chapter 2, which is all about the foolish way we come to know this wisdom. Today we look at the topic of preaching. Yup, that’s right. I will be preaching – about preaching.

That is: Paul is going to show us how the call of God and wisdom of God come together in preaching – the power of God. Preaching issues the call of God – it calls us to repentance and trust in the message of his salvation. Preaching displays the true wisdom of God – through Jesus on the cross. The power of God is seen and heard through the preaching of God’s message – that is how we see and hear the wisdom and call of God.

Proclamation

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. (Verse 1)

Proclamation is an old English word we don’t use in our daily conversation. To proclaim something is to announce it, which sounds even weirder, when you think of it. Because, don’t we make the announcements at the end of our meetings? “Stay back for tea and coffee.” That’s an announcement.

And yet, preaching is first and foremost, an announcement of the gospel. It is proclamation. When we are introduced to Jesus in Mark’s gospel, the first thing he does is “proclaim the good news of God” (Mark 1:14). Jesus says, “Repent and believe the good news!”

That sounds old-fashioned. People today don’t like to be told to repent, or told to believe. Instead shouldn’t we simply talk to one another, in conversation about God? Proclamation is monologue, conversation is dialogue. Why go down a one-way street, when you can have two-way communication?

So today, there are churches you can go to, where there is little or no preaching. Instead the emphasis is on the worship experience – prayer, singing, the lighting of candles or the reading of poetry. Each individual receives a unique experience of God. Everyone is allowed to participate.

Why make a big deal about preaching here in the Chinese Church? We do all sorts of other things: food, fellowship, we have lots of fun – why not make one of those the main thing?

That’s actually a very good question because we find a very good answer here in the bible. In previous weeks, we have seen in the first chapter of 1 Corinthians that God defines his church. The church does not define God. It is God who calls the church into existence.

Beginning with verse 2: the church of God is called to be holy

Then, in verse 9: God … has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ.

And again, in verse 24: To those whom God has called, both Jew and Greek

God calls his church; meaning: he speaks the church into existence. This same God who called Paul in verse 1 to be an apostle, sends Paul in verse 17, to preach the gospel. So the question really is: Why does God make preaching central to the ministry of Paul, and central to the call of the church?

And the answer is: God is a speaking God. He speaks through the gospel, and he calls the church into fellowship with Jesus through the preaching of the gospel.

Thus saith the LORD

It all goes back to the Old Testament. God spoke through the prophets. If you look down at the footnotes, you will see that Paul quote two prophets, Isaiah or Jeremiah. Prophets were messengers. They began their sentences with “This is what the LORD says,” or in the King James, “Thus saith the LORD” – which is way cooler! And that was an important phrase. Isaiah and Jeremiah were not speaking their own thoughts or opinions. They were messengers speaking the word of God to the people of God.

That is what Paul is doing with the gospel. He is speaking the word of God to the people of God. So, the preacher has a very weighty responsibility to show that everything he says comes from this book – bible. Thus saith the LORD!

At Rock Fellowship, we have been studying the book of Exodus. Most of us watched the movie “Prince of Egypt”, the story of Moses freeing his people from the clutches of evil Pharaoh. In the cartoon – each time he confronts Pharaoh, king of Eqypt, Moses will say, “Let my people go!”

Except that isn’t what Moses said. We read this week in Exodus 5, what Moses actually said was, “This is what the LORD says – Let my people go”. Moses was speaking a message from God. These were not Moses’ words – they were God’s. These were God’s people. And this was God’s salvation. Moses said, “Thus saith the LORD!”

What preaching is – and isn’t

So we see in verse 1, Paul telling us what preaching is. It is proclamation. It is a testimony (2:1); meaning he is witnessing to the truth. But verse 1 also tells us what preaching is not. Paul reminds the Corinthians, that he “did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom”. The ESV has “with lofty speech and wisdom”.

Here is a preacher writing to his congregation saying, “Remember how unimpressive I was!” He goes on to say in verse 3: “I came to you in weakness and in fear, and with much trembling”.

Imagine you are interviewing candidates to pastor your church. What would you be looking for? Experience in leadership? Good with kids? Tells a lot of jokes? Reads the bible in Greek and Hebrew?

What kind of questions would you ask him? The size of his last church. How many sermons he has preached.

Or, think of the interviews for Cambridge. You want to get into Cambridge and you need to get the right grades, but you also need to pass an interview. They ask all kinds of questions at these interviews – to find out what kind of person you are; to hear how you think through problems.

Now imagine a student comes into the interview room and hands you his CV. You look at it, expecting a list of all his achievements, his awards and stuff. But instead, he lists all the times he has been punished in school. All the subjects he flunked.

When he answers your questions, he isn’t confident. He’s stuttering. He is struggling to think of the answers. You notice he is sweating. His whole body is even shaking in fear!

Would you let him in? Is this the kind of person you would be looking for?

Paul says – of himself – as their founding pastor, as an apostle of God - “Remember... remember, I came to you in weakness and in fear, and with much trembling”. Why on earth, does he do that?

The Corinthian church was in a city that placed a high premium on wisdom and intellect, not unlike Cambridge. You could make a good living teaching philosophy, maybe even teaching from the bible, if you sounded impressive and looked confident. If you looked the part!

Now what is Paul doing here? He is saying, I made it a point not to be like one of those impressive philosophers and teachers. I didn’t try to win you over with my smarts or new ideas. I didn’t hide my insecurities and fears. But what I did was preach to you the testimony about God.

In a city like Corinth; in our city of Cambridge – which I know, is clamouring for new approaches, novel ideas, the next big thing from impressive speakers; Paul is saying what we really need are faithful preachers who will speak the gospel with clarity and integrity.

Weakness

It is worth taking a moment at verse 3 and asking: “what is Paul’s weakness?” He speaks about it fairly frequently in his letters. This same word “weakness”, is elsewhere translated “illness”, as in Galatians 4:13 – “It was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you”. Again, Paul is pretty unashamed to link his apostolic preaching of the gospel, with a physical disability that he was struggling with.

In fact, Paul will go so far as to boast in his weaknesses in 2 Corinthians 12. There in verse 9, after Paul pleads three times to Jesus to have this thorn in the flesh – a messenger of Satan, he calls it - removed from him. Paul is in agony! He is praying, pleading to God, “Please take this suffering away!” He does this three times.

But God doesn’t remove the thorn.

Instead, Jesus replies with these words, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore – Paul says – I will boast all the more of my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

Now if you look over to verse 4: in a moment Paul will talk about the power of the Spirit and the power of God. Do you see the connection? Paul isn’t just being honest and open about his weaknesses. He understands that God’s grace is amplified when it is displayed through broken vessels. The treasure looks more precious when it isn’t hidden by packaging.

You see, we read about Paul’s “great fear” and “trembling” and we think: he’s being humble. Those aren’t good qualities. You wouldn’t get into Cambridge by being fearful and trembling. You wouldn’t get that plum job by listing your weaknesses in your CV. We think Paul is showing us he is just human.

But actually, Paul is saying his weakness is almost a necessary qualification! His weakness displayed God’s power! Paul boasts in his weakness – so that Christ’s power might rest on him. Paul reminds the Corinthians of his weaknesses – so that they will remember the power of God’s grace in the gospel.

The cross of Christ

Next, true preaching of the bible focuses on the cross.

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. (Verse 2)

When Jesus was with his disciples he kept telling them that he would die, but also that he had to die. “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”

Now Jesus says this throughout the gospels. But the passage I just read is from Luke 24 – the last chapter of Luke. This is after the crucifixion; after the resurrection. And here, Jesus is saying to his disciples, “You need to look back! You need to understand what just happened – why I died, why I went to the cross. You need to see that the entire bible points to this one event as its true fulfilment of God’s promises in me!”

Whenever I meet people and they ask me which church I’m from: I always like to tell people that I’m from C4. Not just CCCC, “The Cambridge Chinese Christian Church”; not just “The Chinese Church”. But I usually say, I’m from “C4”, because in Cantonese it sounds like Seiii For (Sure die)! And all the aunties will go, “Choi! Choi! Choi!”

But friends, these are Jesus’ own words. Jesus said he must “Sei For!” And these are words of the apostle Paul, “I resolved to know nothing except Jesus Christ and him ‘Sei For’”.

Not only here but in, Verse 17: Paul preaches the “cross of Christ”

Verse 18: It is the “message of the cross”

Verse 23: We preach Christ crucified.

That is, it is not enough to simply speak about Jesus as a good man, a righteous man, a holy man. Jesus was crucified.

It is not enough to promise eternal life, blessings from heaven or even forgiveness of sin. Jesus was crucified for our sins, and raised for our justification.

Paul doesn’t let us move one centimetre away from the cross.

Now does this mean that, all of Paul’s sermons were boring? He just kept repeating the same thing – Jesus died for you, Jesus went to the cross for your sins – over, and over again? We can see just from Chapter 1, that Paul doesn’t do that.

In Chapter 1, we’ve seen Paul use Old Testament passages, like Isaiah and Jeremiah, to show how they all point to Jesus on the cross.

So, in verse 19, Paul quotes Isaiah the prophet, saying that will “destroy the wisdom of the wise”, to show that the cross will always appear foolish, in order that salvation is not through wisdom, but through humble trust in God’s provision of forgiveness.

Or in verse 31, Paul quotes from Jeremiah – “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord”, to show that the cross destroys all human pretensions to pride. Not only that, he is saying that if you are to praise God – you praise him through the cross. Elsewhere in Galatians 6:14, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.”

Paul is showing us an important application for our reading of the bible. The purpose of God’s word is to point to Jesus as the Christ and the crucified Messiah. Jesus said, “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms” (Luke 24:44). That’s the whole Old Testament.

So when we study the bible in our groups or in our personal devotion; when he hear the bible taught in our larger gatherings like today, the question we need to ask is, “how does this connect to Jesus Christ and him crucified?”

True preaching centres on the cross.

Power

Finally, true preaching demonstrates the power of God.

Paul says in verse 4, “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power”

Then he adds,

“so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom but on God’s power.”

What’s he talking about? Many people think this has to do with miracles. Speaking in tongues. Prophecy. “I didn’t use words – I showed you the power of the Spirit!”

And so, ironically, in Paul’s defence of preaching, some would find an argument against preaching. So it doesn’t make sense that Paul would tear down the wisdom of the world, draw attention to his weakness and fear and trembling, his intentional distancing of himself from oratorical stylistic methods in preaching the gospel, and then turn 180 degrees in the same breath in verse 4 and say, “Look how impressive I am”.

Rather, Paul has already explained what he means by “power”. Verse 17: For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel – not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Verse 18: For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Verses 17 and 18 of chapter 1, perfectly mirror Paul’s argument in Chapter 2 verses 4 and 5. Do you see that?

What is at stake here is your faith – verse 5 “So that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.”

So what Paul most likely means here is the power of the cross. It is the power of forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of Jesus’ death.

But it is important to see the flow of the argument, because what is at stake here is faith. And the question at the end of the day is: what are you putting your faith in?

Is it in the power of God to cleanse you from sin, through the death of his Son? Or is it in the wisdom of man – that includes trusting in yourself, trusting in your mum or dad’s faith, even trusting in this church.

Yet this question, rightly understood, is not directed at the hearer, but at the preacher. To those of us responsible in leading bible study. To song leaders. To helpers in Children’s Church. You see, Paul is saying, that he has done all this, so that he will not put his hearers in danger in trusting in himself and not Jesus.

And the question the bible is saying to me and to you is: are you putting the cross in front of your hearers to place their trust in. Or are you getting in the way?

Paul says (1:16), Christ did not send me to baptise, but to preach the gospel – not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

When we get in the way of the cross we empty it of its power. When we do that, we endanger ourselves; we endanger our hearers. One good way to test that theory is with verse 18 – does the cross look foolish to our fellowship. Do they say, “Aiya! Why do we need to hear the same thing! It doesn’t always have to be about Jesus”

Does the cross look foolish to them? It may be that we have emptied the cross of its power.

Here I am speaking about preaching - preaching about preaching – and I’ve not said one word about sermon preparation, reading the right commentaries, projecting your voice. Because preaching isn’t one guy standing at the pulpit on Sundays. Preaching is proclaiming the gospel. Preaching is what even Christian does when they speak the message of Jesus on the cross.

And here, Paul is saying, the way you share this gospel – this good news – can make all the difference to your faith, but also theirs. For husbands, reminding your wives of the gospel matters to their faith. For parents, reminding your children of Jesus matters to their faith. For pastors, you are preaching to strengthen the faith of your hearers – displaying God’s power not yours.

It matters because their faith needs to be in Jesus – and Jesus alone. Faith means trusting, relying, depending – and they need to trust, rely and depend on the cross. Are we emptying the cross of its power? By getting in the way? By making it about us and not Jesus.

What is at stake is our faithfulness – but also their faith. True faith rests on God’s true power – the power of Jesus’ blood sacrifice on the cross for the forgiveness of sins.

Paul says:

My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.