10-25-98 We can Go All the Way! II Tim. 4
by Ronald E. George Jr. at the Sand Fork Baptist Church
Chris Berman is an announcer for ESPN. When he gives the highlights of the games he also gives the explanation of the event. When a player gets the ball and runs down the field Berman shouts, "He Could Go All The Way!" The same is true for us in the game called life. We can go all the way. Can you go all the way? What do you need to be able to go all the way in the game called life?
Scripture Text: 2Tim 4:1 I charge [thee] therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. 5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. 6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished [my] course, I have kept the faith: 8Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
Three requirements before you can go all the Way!
1. A Course: to travel with the goal in sight. Are you on the right course? The course of travel during the game must bring to correct ending desired. The Judge sets the course. Each of us has been given a course of life that God desires for us to travel. Are we on the right course?
Many years ago a submarine was rammed by another ship and quickly sank off the Massachusetts coast. Although rescue was impossible at that depth, a diver was dispatched to determine if there was still life aboard the disabled vessel. The diver placed his helmeted ear against the sub's hull and heard a faint tapping sound. Carefully he made note of the dots and dashes and decoded the following question: "Is -- there -- any -- hope?" With great remorse he slowly signaled back: "Hope -- in -- God -- alone."
How different is the broad road of the wicked. Kenneth Cober points out that the worldly man's way of carnal desire terminates in frustration and despair. Lord Byron abandoned himself to the pursuit of pleasure; yet at the age of 35 he wrote,
My days are in the yellow leaf,
The flowers and fruits of love are gone;
The worm, the canker, and the grief
Are mine alone.
Compare those lines with the words of Adam Clarke, a Christian saint and biblical expositor. At 84, he said, "I have passed through the springtime of my life. I have withstood the heat of its summer. I have culled the fruits of fall. I am even now enduring the rigors of its winter, but at no great distance I see the approach of a new, eternal springtime. Hallelujah!"
c. We need to keep the goal in sight. To Paul the goal was the crown of righteousness. This was the reward that the Lord had shown Paul that he was going to give to him. To overcome the obstacles in sight we must keep our eyes on the Lord and on his Word and Will for our lives. He says he will give a crown to all those who love his appearing. Although many will finish not all will receive the crown.
In a recent NCAA cross-country championship held in Riverside, California, 123 of the 128 runners missed a turn. One competitor, Mike Delcavo, stayed on the 10,000 meter course and began waving for fellow runners to follow him. Delcavo was able to convince only four other runners to go with him. Asked what his competitors thought of his mid-race decision not to follow the crowd, Delcavo responded, "They thought it was funny that I went the right way."
Delcavo was one who ran correctly. In the same way, our goal is to run correctly; to finish the race marked out for us by Christ. We can rejoice over those who have courage to follow, ignoring the laughter of the crowd. "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness." (2 Tim. 4:7-8)
2. A Coach: Paul’s coach is Timothy’s coach who is our God. He is the one who urges us on to the finish line, so that we may finish and finish well. He provides all that we need to finish the race and to win. Winning in the Christian life is totally giving up and giving in to the Lord’s course for us. Listen to the Coach and not to men who will lead you in the wrong path. Read the scriptures and Pray for the guidance of God in our lives to go all the way. Do you want to go all the way with the Lord? To go all the way with the Lord in the end of the race we must go all the way with him now.
3. A Crown: The crown is given when the goal has been achieved. The coach, who is also the judge/umpire, gives it. Will everyone receive the crown or is it reserved for those who run the race to the finish faithfully? This crown will be given to all those who have run the race loving and looking for the appearing of the Lord. Will you finish well?