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2 Timothy chapter four. I'll read the chapter and then 
our focus will be on verses six to eight. But 2 Timothy 4, beginning 
in verse 1, I charge you, therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus 
Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing 
and His kingdom, preach the word, be ready in season and out of 
season, convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching. 
for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. 
But according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, 
they will heap up for themselves teachers, and they will turn 
their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables. 
But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work 
of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being 
poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure 
is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the 
race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for 
me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
Judge, will give to me on that day, and not to me only, but 
also to all who have loved His appearing. Be diligent to come 
to me quickly, for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this 
present world, and has departed for Thessalonica. Crescens for 
Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark 
and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry. 
And Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. Bring the cloak that I left with 
Carpus at Choas when you come, and the books, especially the 
parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did 
me much harm. May the Lord repay him according 
to his works. You also must beware of him, 
for he has greatly resisted our words. At my first offense, no 
one stood with me, but all four shook me. May it not be charged 
against them. But the Lord stood with me and 
strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully 
through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was 
delivered out of the mouth of the lion, and the Lord will deliver 
me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. 
To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. Great Prisca and Aquila, 
and the household of Anesophorus. Erastus stayed in Corinth, but 
Trophimus I have left in Miletus, sick. Do your utmost to come 
before winter. Ubulus greets you, as well as 
Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brethren. The Lord Jesus 
Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
thank you for this last letter of the apostle Paul. Thank you 
for the wonderful doctrine that it contains. Thank you for the 
great encouragement as well, and the setting forth of a good 
example, a solid and faithful example of a Christian man. God, 
help us to persevere in like manner. Help us, Lord God, to 
be faithful to the very end, and give us the grace and the 
presence and the power of the Spirit necessary for that great 
endeavor. And even now, God, guide us as 
we consider this passage of Scripture, minister to us, illuminate our 
hearts and minds by the Spirit, and again, forgive us for all 
of our sin and unrighteousness. And we pray through Jesus Christ, 
our Lord. Amen. Well, a couple of weeks 
ago, we looked at a sermon on the ministry of the word, and 
we used one of the texts was 2 Timothy 4. Notice in verse 
2, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season. 
Convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching. 
So the apostle, in his last corporate command, to the church lays emphasis 
on the proclamation of the truth. In other words, Timothy, it's 
not about entertainment. It's not about meeting felt needs. It is rather about the declaration 
of the truth concerning Christ and him crucified. In that particular 
exposition, I gave the two reasons for the command. So not only 
does Paul give the command, preach the word, he designates the manner 
the word is supposed to be preached, convince, rebuke, exhort, with 
all longsuffering and teaching. And then he offers up two reasons 
as to why Timothy should preach the word. The first reason is 
the departure of the church. Notice in verse three, for the 
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. Paul's 
logic is impeccable. Preach the Word, because the 
time is coming when they won't want the Word. That doesn't mean 
you kowtow, it doesn't mean you capitulate, it doesn't mean you 
do exactly what they say, but rather you continue to maintain 
faithfulness by preaching the Word. So the time will come when 
they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, 
because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves 
teachers, and they will turn their ears away from the truth 
and be turned aside to fables. So the first reason why Timothy 
is to preach the word is because of the departure of the church. 
The second reason is verses six to eight. It is the departure 
of the apostle Paul. And I thought this would be a 
helpful encouragement for all of us in terms of perseverance. You'll hear me refer tonight 
to what people call the 11th hour. That means the final hour. Remember this morning in John 
1 39, they had remained with Jesus all day. It was the 10th 
hour. So the 10th hour would have been 
4 p.m. The 11th hour would have been 
5 p.m. It is the hour before the end 
of the day. And oftentimes you'll hear people 
refer to the 11th hour. It is that time when the end 
is on the horizon. And the book of 2 Timothy is 
an 11th hour epistle. It is the last book that the 
apostle Paul wrote. And here in verses six to eight, 
he indicates that the time of his departure is at hand. In 
the book of Philippians, which is another prison epistle written 
between AD 60 and 62, he envisages the possibility that he will 
die. But in Philippians, it's more of the mindset, or he's 
more of the mindset that he's going to continue to live on. 
He knows that's not the case here in 2 Timothy. He knows that 
he's come to the end of the road. He knows that the time of his 
departure is at hand. And so when he says, I have done 
this, I have done this, and I have done that, he had done that, 
or he's able to say that in the 11th hour because he did it in 
the hours prior to that. In other words, if we're gonna 
make a good confession, when we come to the end of our day, 
in terms of personal testimony, it must be backed up by lives 
of faithfulness. lives of perseverance, not sinlessness, 
not perfection, but consistency and faithfulness along the way. 
No man will ever to be able to say, I fought the good fight, 
I have finished the race, I have kept the faith, unless daily 
he's engaging in fighting the good fight, finishing the race, 
keeping the faith. In other words, there is a close 
association between hours one to 10 and the 11th hour. And 
when it comes for Paul to die, we see that his faithful life 
is a great encouragement to him here at the end of his life. 
So I want to look first at the Apostle's present situation in 
verse 6. Secondly, the Apostle's past 
perseverance in verse 7. And then finally, the Apostle's 
future hope in verse 8. But notice, he uses two metaphors 
to indicate that he's going to die. Verse six, for I am already 
being poured out as a drink offering. Turn back to Philippians chapter 
two. Philippians chapter two, I've 
referenced that. You want to see what he is doing 
in comparison. Philippians chapter one, actually, 
to begin with. Philippians 119, for I know that 
this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply 
of the spirit of Jesus Christ. According to my earnest expectation 
and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness 
as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, 
whether by life or by death. So the idea of death is certainly 
in his mind, the concept or possibility or potentiality rather of dying 
is there. He makes this grand statement 
in verse 21. For to me to live is Christ and 
to die is gain. Hard to punish a man, hard to 
hurt a man who has that particular mindset. For to me to live is 
Christ but to die is gain. How do you hurt him? If you let 
him live, he has Christ. If you kill him, he has more 
Christ. He's a tough guy to deal with. 
Verse 22, but if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit 
from my labor. Yet what I shall choose, I cannot 
tell. For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart. 
and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless, to 
remain in the flesh is more needful for you. And being confident 
of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you 
all for your progress and joy of faith, that your rejoicing 
for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to 
you again." So he has this idea that he could potentially be 
executed. It wasn't the rage that we'll find in 2 Timothy 
in terms of the historical situation, but Nero was on the throne at 
the time of the writing of Philippians. Nero gets really bad by the time 
of the writing of 2 Timothy. But already in AD 60-62, Nero's 
starting to lose it a little bit. Prior to AD 60, in the late 
50s, Nero was hedged in by a couple of decent advisors. He didn't 
become the wretch, or he wasn't the wretch that he would ultimately 
become. So Paul doesn't really know exactly what's going to 
happen in terms of his imprisonment in the empire in AD 60 to 62. But then notice at 217, yes, 
and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice 
and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 
for the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me." 
So back to 2 Timothy 4, verse 6. He's using ceremonial language. He's using the language of a 
drink offering. Comes from Exodus 29, Leviticus 23, Numbers 15, 
Numbers 28. He is alluding to his blood poured 
out in martyrdom. Now, it wouldn't be sacrificial, 
it wouldn't be atoning, it wouldn't be those sorts of things that 
would be true of the blood of Jesus Christ, but nevertheless, 
he's using that language to reminisce about the reality that he is 
coming to die. The language of offering or sacrifice 
should not be seen the way Christ's sacrifice or offering was made, 
for atonement. Paul's offering in the language 
of guilt was in the cause of Christ and for the confirmation 
of the gospel and the faith of the saints in it. Now, imminency, 
the fact that it's going to happen, does not mean immediacy. Because 
notice in verse 9, "...be diligent to come to me quickly, for Denis 
has forsaken me, having loved this present world, has departed 
for Thessalonica, Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia." 
Notice dropping down into verse 13, "...bring the cloak that 
I left with Carpus at Troas when you come, and the books, especially 
the parchments. So while his death is imminent, 
as far as he's concerned in 2 Timothy 4, it's not immediate. There's 
still time for this command given to Timothy to collect these items, 
a cloak, because it would be cold in the prison, and as well 
the books, especially the parchments. He's not lazy, he's not going 
to just take his ease, but rather he's going to be diligent. And 
as we move through the rest of 2 Timothy 4, that is essentially 
what he does. He is moving troops around. While 
he's in a prison cell in Rome, he is nevertheless active in 
terms of church planting, disciple making, and Christ glorifying. The apostle Paul didn't just 
kind of slither his way into heaven, but he was useful to 
the very end. And then notice the next bit 
of language that he uses. He talks about being poured out 
as a drink offering. And then he says, the time of 
my departure is at hand. It's the word used in Philippians 
1.23. It's a euphemism for death. One man says it essentially refers 
to loosening of something, such as the mooring ropes of a ship 
or the ropes of a tent. The time of my departure is at 
hand. Now, again, just to give you 
a bit of the historical context relative to Nero. John Fox in 
the famous Book of Martyrs writes this. He says, the first of the 
ten persecutions was stirred up by Nero about AD 64. So Paul 
is writing just about this time frame as well. So he understands 
that he's going to die. Now, if you haven't read any 
history, or you don't know who Nero was, or you haven't availed 
yourself of John Fox, do that. It is most important, brethren, 
to understand what our brethren faced in terms of threat from 
the civil government. He goes on to say his rage against 
Christians was so fierce that Eusebius, Eusebius was an early 
church historian, records, quote, a man might then see cities full 
of men's bodies, the old line together with the young, and 
the dead bodies of women cast out naked, without reverence 
of that sex in the open streets, end quote. And then Fox continues, 
many Christians in those days thought that Nero was the Antichrist 
because of his cruelty and abominations. Paul also suffered under this 
persecution when Nero sent two of his esquires, Pharaoh and 
Parthenius, to bring him to his execution. They found Paul instructing 
the people and asked him to pray for them so that they might believe. 
How would you imagine that? Nero sends a couple of his henchmen 
and they come to arrest you, to take you off, to kill you, 
but first they ask you to pray for them so that they might believe. It says, receiving Paul's assurance 
that they would soon be baptized, the two men led him out of the 
city to the place of execution where Paul was beheaded. This 
persecution ended under Vespasian's reign, giving the Christians 
a little peace. So it was a very tumultuous time 
in the early church. And so in Philippians, a couple 
of years prior, the possibility was that he could be killed. But by the time we get to the 
writing of 2 Timothy, he knows it. He knows that he's not going 
to escape this time. It is in fact his 11th hour. 
And then notice the close connection between verses five and six. 
So after giving Timothy the charge, after giving the first reason 
for the charge, he has this parenthetical almost statement in verse five, 
but you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work 
of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. There is a contrast 
and a comparison between verse five, but you, and verse six, 
for I. Because what Paul is saying is 
in light of the fact that I am being poured out as a drink offering 
and the time of my departure is at hand, you need to be faithful, 
Timothy, in preaching the word. You need to be faithful, Timothy, 
in continuing the ministry of the gospel. You need to be faithful, 
Timothy, in doing what it is I've shown you by example and 
given to you by way of instruction. Timothy, hold the line, hold 
fast, and be faithful. Now notice, secondly, the Apostle's 
past perseverance. We need to appreciate in the 
first place that he's not boasting. This isn't the language of triumphalism, 
but rather it is the language of perseverance. He's not patting 
himself on the back. He's not trying to gain glory. 
He's not trying to say to everybody, hey, look at what a great guy 
I have been. It is a matter of fact. It is 
a statement of reality. It is the truth. And to back 
that truth up, all one needs to do is read the book of Acts, 
to read the epistles of the apostle Paul, to know something of the 
historical situation that our brother faced and to see how 
he in fact persevered through every jot and tittle of it. So 
when readers of the New Testament get to verse seven, if they for 
a moment start to think, wow, this is a proud fellow, wow, 
this is a boastful man, they haven't read accurately everything 
that has preceded this. This isn't triumphalism, but 
rather it is perseverance. Notice as well though, he doesn't 
mention God's grace. He doesn't say by the grace of 
God, I have fought the good fight. By the grace of God, I have finished 
the race. By the grace of God, I have kept 
the faith. Now, those of us who know Paul 
know that he was always dependent upon the grace of God. It would 
be simply unimaginable that he would come to the 11th hour, 
he would come to that point of death, and he would not have 
any acknowledgement of God's grace. It's assumed. We know 
that it's by God's grace. We know that because of Paul's 
emphasis in other places. Look at 1 Timothy 1. 1 Timothy 
1, specifically at verse 12. 1 Timothy 1, verse 12. And I thank 
Christ Jesus, our Lord, who has enabled me because he counted 
me faithful, putting me into the ministry. Although I was 
formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man, but I obtained 
mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of 
our Lord was exceedingly abundant with faith and love, which are 
in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying and 
worthy of all acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world 
to save sinners "'of whom I am chief.'" See, he's not a man 
that is negligent in terms of acknowledgement of the grace 
of God. Look at one, I'm sorry, look 
at chapter, 2 Timothy chapter two, verse one, when he comes 
to exhort Timothy, "'You therefore, my son, be strong "'in the grace 
that is in Christ Jesus.'" How could Paul exhort him that unless 
it was from experience? And then again, in our own chapter 
at verse 17, Back to verse 16, notice that my first defense, 
well, back up to verse 14. Look at what Paul does in verse 
14. It's not just David. It's not just Jeremiah that engaged 
in imprecatory psalms or prayers. Look at Paul in 2 Timothy 4, 
14. Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord 
repay him according to his works. What is he saying? He is saying 
that he's an unsaved man. He is a reprobate. He is a wretch. He is a vile enemy of God and 
of his church. And so he says, may the Lord 
repay him. Verse 15, you also must be aware 
of him for he has greatly resisted our words. But then notice in 
verse 16, at my first defense, no one stood with me, but all 
forsook me. May it not be charged against 
them. So on the one hand, an imprecation 
for Alexander the coppersmith because he did him much harm. 
On the other hand, these friends and acquaintances of Paul didn't 
stand with him, but they forsook him. But he says, may the Lord 
not charge them with it. In other words, they're not reprobate. 
They're not God-hating rebels. They perhaps had a moment of 
weakness. They perhaps had a period of weakness. But hopefully God 
will spare them in his great mercy and kindness. You see, 
brethren, at times the Christian life is complex. There are times 
when the saint of Christ imitates Christ by giving place to God's 
wrath and praying the imprecatory psalms. There are other instances 
and seasons where the saint imitates Christ by praying for God's mercy 
upon people. Again, there's no straight answer 
in terms of who do we pray the imprecatory psalms for. I would 
suggest as a beginning point, those enemies of Christ and those 
enemies of Christ's church, those who are avowed. But then notice 
what he says, there's a contrast. Verse 16, at my first offense, 
no one stood with me, but all forsook me. But notice in verse 
17, but the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that 
the message might be preached fully through me, and that all 
the Gentiles might hear. Brethren, be encouraged. Your 
friends may engage in a moment of weakness. Your friends may, 
in the last hour, abandon you. But the Lord doesn't. The Lord 
is with His saints. The Lord is with His church. 
The Lord is with His people, no matter what the situation 
is. And so while His earthly companions 
abandon Him, Nevertheless, the Lord stands with him. So going 
back to verse seven, when he mentions what he has done, it 
is faithful perseverance and that dependent upon God's good 
grace. Notice the first thing he says, 
I have fought the good fight. He uses a similar metaphor in 
1 Corinthians 9.6. Therefore I run thus, not with 
uncertainty, thus I fight, not as one who beats the air. So 
he likens the Christian life to a fight. He says, I have fought 
the good fight. Turn back to 1 Timothy 1. He 
exhorts Timothy to this mindset as well. 1 Timothy 1 at verse 
18. This charge I commit to you, 
son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning 
you, that by them you may wage the good warfare. First Timothy 
chapter six, verse 12, fight the good fight of faith, lay 
hold on eternal life to which you were also called and have 
confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 
And then notice in second Timothy chapter two, I'm sorry, yeah, 
second Timothy chapter two at verse three, you therefore must 
endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. So going back 
to 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy 4, 7, when he says he has fought the 
good fight, we need to understand that it's the good fight because 
it's God's fight. Paul is not talking about his 
own sort of reputation. He's not talking about his own 
aggrandizement. He's not talking about his own 
pride or his arrogance. The fight is good because it's 
God's. The fight is good because it's 
Christ's. It is a fight for the glory of 
God. It is a fight for the proclamation 
of the truth. It is a fight for the establishment 
of faithful churches. That's why it's a good fight. 
But why is it a fight? Because there's this unholy trinity 
that aligns itself against the church. We call it the world, 
the flesh, and the devil. The world hates the church, the 
true church, the church that actually preaches the offense 
of the cross. The flesh hates it because honestly, 
brethren, we would much rather have entertainment or we'd much 
rather have anything that catered to our felt needs. and as well 
the devil. Remember that parable of the 
soils. Jesus says that the devil is like those birds of the air 
who come and eat up the seed. Less people hear the word, believe 
the word, and are saved as a result. But then, think about this one. It's not only the world, the 
flesh, and the devil. Very often, it's the church itself that has 
to be fought with. Not in the sense of carnality, 
not in the sense of actually going to blows, but there's opposition, 
there's resistance, there's a hesitancy. I think it is so well described 
in the book of Judges. At Judges chapter 15, the nation 
of Israel is under a Philistine occupation. They're enslaved 
to the Philistines. And the Philistines come to get 
Samson, because Samson has done some ruination. He's engaged in his ministry 
of destruction relative to the Philistines. So the Philistines 
come to get Samson. But what is unconscionable, absolutely 
positively unconscionable, is that Judah helps the Philistines. Judah comes to the rock Etam, 
where Samson is, and they say, turn yourself in to the Philistines. Don't you know the problems you're 
creating for us? Don't you know how difficult 
you're making it for us? The very Savior of Israel, they 
come and tell to go ahead and subject himself to the enemies. It is absolutely incomprehensible 
that the people of God Judah, no less, the royal tribe, the 
first tribe in the book of Judges that is tasked with going into 
the land and taking possession, or dividing up the land and retaining 
it because of God's good grace. But they turn over Samson into 
the hands of the Philistines. Which, unbeknownst to them, that 
was the best and blessed thing, or most best and blessed thing 
that they could do, because Samson finds the jawbone of an ass and 
kills a thousand Philistines. So, much to their chagrin, they 
actually did destruction upon their captors. So it is the case 
at times. I believe this Alexander the 
coppersmith perhaps at one time was an associate or a professing 
believer. We don't know the state of the 
case of Demas having loved this present world. We don't know 
if he came back. We don't know what his situation 
was. But that internal threat that faced the nation of Israel 
in the old covenant and that internal threat that faces the 
church today is oftentimes the reason why it's a good fight. we have to fight with reference 
to advancement of the cause of Christ. Notice, secondly, he 
speaks of having finished the race. The similarity again with 
1 Corinthians 9, 24 to 26, but also in Acts 20. Remember that pastor's conference 
on his way to Jerusalem. He's in Miletus, he calls for 
the elders at Ephesus, and he gives them a charge. And then 
he says in Acts 20 at verse 24, when he's rehearsing, that he 
doesn't know what's going to happen, except that the Holy 
Spirit testifies that in every city there will be chains and 
afflictions. Imagine that. We don't want to go anywhere 
where it's a little bit uncomfortable. We don't have the Holy Spirit 
telling us to go into these cities where there's going to be afflictions 
and change. Paul does that. And he says this 
to those elders. He says, none of these things 
move me, nor do I count my life dear to myself so that I may 
finish my race with joy and the ministry which I receive from 
the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. 
The apostle is able to say at the 11th hour, I have finished 
the race, because he effectively ran the race from hours 1 to 
10. Brethren, that's the point of 
this sermon. You're not going to say in the 11th hour, I've 
fought the good fight, if you're not fighting it now. You're not 
going to be able to say on that 11th hour, I have finished the 
race. If you're not running it now, 
if you're lazy, if you're inactive, if you're not giving service 
to the Lord Jesus, you're not going to have this conscience 
when you come to die. You're going to be wracked with 
unbelief. You may be wracked with doubt and sorrow. The apostle 
Paul is not because he was faithful throughout his life. And then 
notice thirdly what he says, he had kept the faith. I have 
fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept 
the faith. There's two ways we can understand 
Paul's keeping of the faith. There is the subjective, Paul's 
belief in the gospel, and then there is the objective, Paul's 
protection of the gospel. In other words, the subjective 
belief of the apostle Paul in Christ Jesus, our Lord, or the 
objective content of the truth of the gospel. Either way, and 
in both instances, Paul can say, I have kept the faith. I have 
kept my personal faith. With all of the trials, with 
all of the difficulties, with all of the hardships and the 
afflictions, Paul never recanted. In fact, go back for just a moment 
to 2 Timothy 1. 2 Timothy 1, where the emphasis is on his subjective 
faith, his hold of the gospel. Verse 12, for this reason, I 
also suffer these things. Nevertheless, I am not ashamed, 
for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able 
to keep what I have committed to him until that day. And now 
drop down to verse 15, after giving good exhortation, well, 
we should never skip 13 and 14. Hold fast the pattern of sound 
words. Here's the objective. Hold fast 
the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith 
and love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which 
was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in 
us. That's objective. Hold fast the truth, don't let 
it go, don't relinquish it. When everybody in the church 
says, we don't want to hear about predestination, preach predestination. When everybody in the church 
says, I don't want to hear about submission to the Lord Jesus, 
preach submission to the Lord Jesus. When everybody in the 
church wants to hear Joel Osteen on how to get rich, don't do 
that, Timothy. Hold fast the pattern of sound 
words. It's about Jesus Christ, life, 
death, and resurrection. Now he's going back to the subjective, 
the fact that he's held fast with reference to gospel truth. 
Verse 15, This you know, that all those in Asia have turned 
away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes. "'The 
Lord grant mercy to the household of Vanessa Forrest, "'for he 
often refreshed me "'and was not ashamed of my chain. "'But 
when he arrived in Rome, "'he sought me out very zealously 
and found me. "'The Lord grant to him that 
he may find mercy "'from the Lord in that day. "'And you know 
very well how many ways "'he ministered to me at Ephesus.'" 
The point is simply this, all those in Asia have turned away 
from me. What does that mean? It means 
all those in Asia had a big problem, but it means that Paul didn't. 
Paul didn't turn away, Paul didn't relinquish, Paul didn't let go, 
Paul didn't compromise, Paul didn't want his joy and comfort 
and ease, Paul didn't ever to say to the Roman Empire, oh yeah, 
I'm gonna renounce the Lord Jesus Christ so I can go be a free 
man. Whatever the consequences, whatever the hardships, whatever 
the difficulties associated with it, the apostle Paul accepted 
it. That is a great encouragement 
and a great example for the likes of you and I. So it's not only, 
though, the subjective hold, Paul's belief in the truth, but 
also objectively. Clarke says, the faith is the 
doctrinal content of Christianity, the deposit which God deposited 
with Paul and Timothy. I'm going to come back to this 
point when we close the sermon. But before we go from this point, 
isn't this what you want to say in your 11th hour? Isn't this 
the kind of stuff you're hoping to be able to pass on to your 
children and your grandchildren? Is it going to be, I built a 
great company? That's not a bad thing to build a great company. 
It's not a bad thing to amass wealth. It's not a bad thing 
to get graduate degrees. But when it comes to the 11th 
hour, I would suggest, brethren, that those things probably aren't 
going to matter. What is going to matter is that 
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have 
kept the faith. If that is what we want to pass 
on in the 11th hour, then we need to be faithful in hours 
one to 10. If we're not, we won't be. Again, 
I'm not suggesting we're not going to be saved because we 
didn't try harder or whatever, but to have this kind of a clear 
conscience, to have this kind of comfort. One man in the history 
of the church said concerning Christians, our people die well. Our people do die well. Why? Because they have confidence 
in the Savior who has sustained them in hours 1 to 10, brings 
some of this home with power in hour 11, and then receives 
them unto himself when they depart from this world. And that brings 
us finally to the apostles' future hope. Notice, having said what 
he said in verse 7, he says in verse 8, Finally, there is laid 
up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
judge, will give to me on that day, and not to me only, but 
also to all who have loved his appearing. The imagery of the 
games continues. He uses that imagery again in 
1 Corinthians 9. He likens the discipline of the 
Christian life to the discipline of the athlete. The Apostle says, 
look at the athlete. They get up early. They buffet 
their bodies. They don't go party on Friday 
night. They don't indulge their flesh. Rather, they discipline their 
body, they bring it into subjection, such that they can be faithful. 
They are temperate in all things. And he says, why? They do it 
for a perishable crown. Do you know what you got when 
you won the Olympics in this time? I don't know if they actually 
called it the Olympics, but it was the games. Paul was a tent 
maker, no doubt he was very familiar with athletic event. They'd get 
a garland wreath for their head and front row tickets to the 
theater. That was it. I read somewhere one of the countries, 
I think it was Singapore, gives their gold medal winner $750,000. 
That's pretty good incentive. You didn't get that in the empire. 
You got a wreath for your head and you got front row tickets. 
But his point is, they do it, they buffet the body, they get 
up early, they don't go out on Friday night. They do that for 
a perishable crown. We have an imperishable crown. 
We have everything. We have Christ. We have glory. 
We have Emmanuel's land. We have all that God has held 
out for his people. And this is his emphasis here. 
Paul is not in this because he just likes to suffer. Paul is 
not in this because he's got some sadistic or masochistic 
bent. He doesn't just like affliction. 
He doesn't just like hardship. He's not a Spartan. He's not 
a Stoic. He's not the sort of guy that has no joy in his life. And the more misery and pain, 
the better it is. Now he's future oriented. He is like Moses. Turn over to 
Hebrews chapter 11. Hebrews chapter 11 and see what 
motivated Moses. There'd be a sermon for the hucksters. 
The motivation of Moses, gold and money, no. Notice in verse 
23, in Hebrews 11, by faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden 
three months by his parents because they saw he was a beautiful child 
and they were not afraid of the king's command. By faith, Moses, 
when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's 
daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people 
of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin." Beautiful 
statement, isn't it? He'd rather suffer with the people 
of God than to engage in the passing pleasures of sin. Notice 
that sin offers pleasure. People don't go out and sin because 
it hurts. Well, I mean, we do know it hurts, 
but... because they hate it, there's a certain form of pleasure 
attached to sin. That's why people sin, but it's 
a passing pleasure. Notice, however, with the passing 
pleasures of sin, why does Moses do this? Why does he do verse 
25? I'd rather suffer affliction with the people of God than to 
enjoy the passing pleasures of sin. Notice in verse 26, esteeming 
the reproach of Christ, what? Greater riches than the treasures 
in Egypt, for he looked to the reward. Same idea in the Apostle 
Paul. We go back to 2 Timothy chapter 
4. Now I'm not suggesting this is 
the only motivation, it's what God is going to give you. No, 
we do what God calls us to do because we're faithful, we're 
obedient, we're compliant, we do what we're supposed to do. 
But we're never to diminish the reality that God holds forth 
a crown. We're never to diminish the reality 
that we go to Emmanuel's land. We're not to diminish the reality 
that we get to engage in glory that far exceeds this momentary 
light affliction that we face in this world. Verse 8, finally 
there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness. Same emphasis 
in Philippians chapter 3, verses 13 and 14. Brethren, I do not 
count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting 
those things which are behind and reaching forward to those 
things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize 
of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. That reflects what 
he says in Philippians 1.21. For to me to live is Christ and 
to die is what? It's gain. Why is it gain? Because it's more Christ. See, 
that's what we have in our future, and that's what encourages the 
Apostle Paul. Finally, there is laid up for 
me the crown of righteousness. Let me give you two authors on 
what this crown of righteousness is. John Gill, he says, and this 
is called a crown of righteousness because it comes through the 
righteousness of Christ. It is that which gives a right 
unto it and without which it cannot be enjoyed. And then Augustine, 
this is one of those places where Augustine glows. He says, how 
would God render the crown as a righteous judge if he had not 
first given grace as a merciful father? And how would there have 
been righteousness in us had it not been preceded by the grace 
which justifies us? And how would that crown have 
been rendered as due had not all that we have been given when 
it was not due? In other words, the crown of 
righteousness is inextricably tied to the graciousness of God. It's not the reward for payment. It is the crown upon God's work 
in our lives and hearts. It's not, oh, good for you, Paul, 
you fought the good fight, you finished the race, you have kept 
the faith, now I'm going to give you your reward. No, it's all 
of grace, the entirety of it. What God gives is given by God, 
not because we deserve it, but because God is gracious. Notice 
who the judge is on that day, which the Lord, the righteous 
judge, will give to me on that day. You see that in 2 Timothy 
4 verse 1. Why does Paul tell Timothy that 
the church and ministers must preach the word? Verse 1. I charge 
you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who will 
judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom. 
Christ is the righteous judge who will give that crown. Now 
the apostle is most likely contrasting what he's going to face when 
he meets Jesus and what he's going to face when he meets Nero. 
Because Nero's not a righteous judge, Nero's not gonna give 
him a crown, but rather Nero is going to behead him. Nero 
is going to have his head taken clean off of his shoulders because 
he's been branded as an enemy of the state, a traitor. But 
notice that Paul doesn't stop there. He's not just it's all 
about me. It's all me, me, me, me, me. He's thinking about the church. 
He's encouraging the people of God. He's writing under the inspiration 
of the Holy Spirit. Look at the end. Verse 22, the 
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your plural spirit. Grace be with you. plural. In other words, he's writing 
to Timothy, but Timothy is a foil for the entirety of the church. 
He's writing to Timothy to encourage Timothy, but he's writing to 
us to encourage us. So finally, there is laid up 
for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
judge will give to me on that day. And not to me only, but 
also to all who have loved his appearing. In other words, this 
is God's dealings with his people. When you buy grace, fight the 
good fight. When you buy grace, finish the 
race. When you buy grace, keep the 
faith. You will receive this crown of 
life. Again, Keep it out of your head 
that it's payment for services rendered. You do it all by God's 
grace. The gift, the sustaining, the 
seeing you through, all of that is glory given to God most high. But there is a crown at the end 
for all of God's people. Towner says, the closing encouragement 
reminds all readers that while responsibilities in God's service 
may differ, all, including the apostle, are called to participate 
in the same contest, at the same level of faithful performance, 
with a view to receiving the same reward. And I love the way 
that Paul describes that at the end, excuse me, in verse eight. And not only to me, but also 
to all who have loved his appearing. or longs for his appearing. Brethren, does that describe 
you? Do you long for the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ? Is 
it one of those things you say or you echo with John the Apostle 
at the end of the book of Revelation? Even so, Lord Jesus, come, come 
quickly. Is there that yearning in our 
hearts? Now, it's not It's not wrong to want to see our grandbabies 
grow up. It's not wrong to want to see 
people get married. It's not wrong to want to see, you know, 
further education and the building of good companies and all that 
sort of thing. But brethren, are we so tied and fixed to this 
world that we're not longing for the coming of our Lord Jesus 
Christ? There ought to be that yearning on the part of God's 
people where we say with John, even so Lord, even so come Lord 
Jesus. This is a most earnest expectation 
that the people of God have. and it is a legitimate desire 
for us to express. In fact, Jesus taught us to pray, 
hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come. There are two ways that 
interpreters understand that phrase, thy kingdom come. There 
is the kingdom of grace now. We pray on Saturday night. We 
pray at the prayer meeting on Sunday morning. God may your 
kingdom of grace come through the preaching of your word. But 
there's that eschatological kingdom of glory Thy kingdom come. May it come in power. May it 
come in the manifestation of glory. May you consummate the 
age and may you enter us into that blessed state. There is 
that yearning and that longing in the people of God. Look just 
over to Titus chapter 2. Titus 2 at verse 11, for the 
grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching 
us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live 
soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age. Notice, looking 
for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and 
Savior, Jesus Christ. For the most part, here in the 
West, we've got it pretty good. Perhaps we're not yearning as 
we ought for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Again, not 
to minimize the temporal blessings and benefits that our God gives 
us. The psalmist extols God in Psalm 68 because he loads us 
daily with benefits. Jesus speaks concerning that 
particular petition. Give us this day our daily bread. 
We have been begraced by God in the temporal sphere with a 
whole lot of good things. But let us never get to the point 
where that whole lot of good temporal thing makes us forget 
the glory that awaits us in the coming of our blessed Lord Jesus 
Christ. I want to end with two thoughts. 
First, the examination of believers. You need to ask yourself, as 
I need to ask myself, first, what do we want to be able to 
say in the 11th hour? What do we want to be able to 
say in the 11th hour? It's funny, this is a sermon 
that I preached several years ago, and I just kind of tease 
out a few things in the notes to stir up my memory, and I just 
will read you what I have. I made a little bit of a change, 
but you know, what is better? I built a great company, or I 
achieved my education, or I got the high score on Candy Crush. I don't know why Candy Crush 
was in my head at that particular time, so this was several years 
ago. Or even worse, imagine coming 
to your 11th hour and the report of your heart is, my hockey team 
finally won the Stanley Cup. Who cares? Who cares about any 
of that stuff? What do you want to be able to 
say in the 11th hour when you come to die? Second, do you strive 
to live in such a way now that you will be able to say what 
Paul said in the 11th hour? Again, brethren, I hope you all 
know me enough to know I am not preaching justification by words. 
I am not teaching salvation by words. I am not teaching you 
that you need to live in such a way in hours 1 to 10 so that 
you get to go to heaven. No, we're justified freely by 
His grace. Justification is by faith alone, 
but that faith is always accompanied by all other saving graces, such 
that there will be sanctification in the life of the believer, 
such that there will be fighting the good fight, running the race, 
keeping the faith. All those things are indicative 
of the change of heart that God has wrought through his blessed 
gospel. So do we strive to live in such 
a way that we will be able to say what Paul says in the 11th 
hour? In other words, are we now fighting, 
persevering, and keeping? Or are we content with laziness? Are we content with apathy? Are 
we content with that soul-crushing and that soul-killing sort of 
inactivity that oftentimes attaches itself to the people of God? 
Do you know that when Paul writes Philippians and he says, for 
to me to live is Christ and to die is gain, he had been a Christian 
for about 30 years? That wasn't the honeymoon phase 
for Paul. You'll hear people speak like 
that. Oh, he's newly converted, so he has all this zeal and he 
always shows up at church. That'll wear off. What a wretched 
mindset we've adopted if we begin to entertain for a moment that 
that's somehow legit. Going back to the temple and 
back to the tabernacle, God is worth it. 30 years in, God is 
worth your attendance at the prayer meeting. God is worth 
your attendance at both morning and evening worship. God is worth 
your everything in terms of service to Him. The last several months 
has affected some people. Some people are more in earnest 
in terms of corporate worship. Some people are less earnest 
about corporate worship. Some people didn't seem to affect 
at all. What are we going to do in terms 
of going forward? Are we going to half-heartedly 
fight? Are we going to half-heartedly run? Are we going to half-heartedly 
try to keep the faith? Or is it, by God's grace, going 
to be the case that we persevere? And third, do we love, long for 
the appearing of Christ? Do we look forward to the crown 
of righteousness? Just a bit of a background to 
this particular message. I wasn't going to preach this 
message. I was going to preach something else. But just to go 
a little bit beyond that, I wrote to the brothers in my absence. 
Here's what's going to happen. Brother Mike is going to preach. 
Brother Ryan's going to preach. I just gave to the deacons. And I said, you know, at the 
bottom, I said, if I die in a car crash on the way there or back, 
I'll see on the other side in Emmanuel's land. So I had planned 
to preach something. I asked a brother what he thought. 
And he said, you know, something that would encourage the saints. 
And so I mentioned this text tonight. He says, is this your 
swan song? I said, I hope not. That wasn't my intention at all, 
not even a little tiny bit. There's nothing of me here. It 
was simply an attempt to encourage all of us to faithful perseverance. If we want to be able in the 
11th hour, then in hours one to 10, we serve Christ. And there's nothing better. There's 
nothing more glorious. Nobody's the loser because he 
served Jesus. Nobody's the loser because he 
attended church. Nobody's the loser because they 
went to the Lord's supper. These are all the benefits and 
the privileges associated with our religion. But for some believers, 
it's almost like the drudgery. It's the heartache. It's the 
pain and the suffering. No, that's not the pain and the 
suffering. So let us, by grace, go forward in the fear of God 
and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. And in terms of the unbeliever, 
consider the infinite worth and glory of Jesus Christ. Why would 
a first century, most likely prestigious rabbi, go through 
what he went through to identify with Jesus? When you read Paul's 
sort of autobiography, his religious resume in Philippians chapter 
3, he was a pretty polished fellow. He was a pretty good guy. He 
was considered a Pharisee, or he was a Pharisee. He was looked 
at as a religious leader in Israel. So why would he give all that 
up? Why would he sacrifice that? Well, he tells us in Philippians 
chapter 3, what things were gained became dung to me. Became what? The Greek word is skubalon. Is 
it dung or is it something that is thrown to dogs? Either way, 
all those religious accomplishments meant nothing to him anymore. 
Why? For the excellence of the knowledge 
of Christ Jesus my Lord. Someone well said, is what you're 
living for worth dying for? Brethren, Christ is. If you're 
not a brethren, believe the gospel. Secondly, consider the certainty 
of the day of judgment. You've no doubt heard that maxim. 
Two things are certain in this world, death and taxes. I tell 
you, you can evade paying taxes. If you don't mind a life in prison, 
if you don't mind a life in court, if you don't mind a life of Revenue 
Canada breathing down your neck, you can evade paying your taxes. But there are two things you 
cannot escape, death and judgment. Hebrews 9.27, and as it is appointed 
for men to die once, but after this, the judgment. So consider 
the infinite worth and glory of Jesus Christ, but as well, 
consider the certainty of the day of judgment. If there's something 
absent in this modern world, it is that, it is the thought 
of an afterlife. This isn't medieval England. 
This isn't superstitious Africa. This isn't the place where people 
actually look beyond their own nose. We live in a materialistic 
age. We live in a very sort of affluent 
age. We live in a day and age where 
we're all very self-sufficient. We don't think even to the grave, 
let alone beyond the grave. And yet the Bible everywhere 
sets that forth. We're going to stand in judgment 
before our Lord Jesus. And then finally, for the unbeliever, 
consider the righteousness of the judge. Notice, finally, there 
is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, 
the righteous judge. We should understand that in 
one of two ways. First, the righteous judge isn't gonna wink and let 
us into heaven if we have not believed on him. In other words, 
there's not going to be any finagling. There's not going to be wiggling 
out of the clear implications of having rejected the Savior. 
But this righteous judge, here and now, offers his righteousness 
in the gospel. This righteous judge here and 
now through the proclamation of the gospel on the written 
page of the word of God offers a righteousness that avails with 
God. He says to you to come, to believe 
on him and you will receive both the forgiveness of sins and the 
righteousness that he'll clothe you in so that you'll be able 
to stand before God most high. So unbeliever, consider those 
things, the glory, the worth of our blessed Savior, the reality 
of judgment to come, and the reality that Christ gives a righteousness 
that will avail on that day of judgment. Well, let us pray. 
Our Father in heaven, we thank you for this section of Holy 
Scripture. We thank you for our Lord Jesus 
and for the grace that He has brought to us and the mercy of 
God displayed so vividly in the Gospel. We thank you as well 
for this example of the Apostle Paul, a man of steadfastness, 
a man of perseverance, a man who is able in the eleventh hour 
to say what he says. because he had been faithful 
in the previous hours. Give us grace to ponder these 
things, and God, if we've become lazy, if we've become apathetic 
or indifferent in some way, God, help us to repent, help us to 
forsake these things, and help us to see that Jesus Christ is 
altogether lovely, that he is chief among 10,000, and that 
he is worthy of the best service that we can muster. And we ask 
now that you would go with us, that you would watch over us, 
I pray for your blessing upon the church, be with Pastor Mike 
as he preaches here next Sunday, be with our dear brother Ryan 
as he preaches the following Sunday, and may you be glorified, 
and may you be honored, and may you be pleased to dwell in the 
midst of the people here. And we ask through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen. Close with a brief time 
of meditation.