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2nd Timothy chapter 4. I'll read verses 1 to 8. I charge 
you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who will 
judge the living and the dead at his appearing in his kingdom. 
Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season. Convince, 
rebuke, exhort with all long suffering 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. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for the written word of the living and true God. 
We thank you for Paul's emphasis to the churches in terms of the 
gospel ministry. And we ask, Father, again, that 
you'd bless our brothers that are laboring in the Word and 
doctrine. I pray that you'd raise up more men to labor in the Word 
and doctrine, both here and abroad, that we might see a recovery 
of the Christian pulpit in our day, that emphasis upon the proclamation 
of the truth as that means, one of the primary means, by which 
God is pleased to save sinners. Forgive us now for our sin. Guide 
us and direct us by your Spirit. And we ask in the name and for 
the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, I don't think it 
would be an underestimation to say that preaching has fallen 
on difficult times, not in every single place. but in a lot of 
places. In other words, the emphasis 
upon the Christian pulpit is not always as strong as it ought 
to be. We've just come out of a lockdown 
scenario where I think we saw that in terms of a relinquishment 
on the part of men of God, charged by God to preach the Word, and 
they were not doing it. As well recently, the new president 
of the Southern Baptist Convention has been found out to be a plagiarizer. Not just a line from a sermon 
here or a sermon there, but lots of lines from lots of sermons 
in a lot of his own public ministry. That man has not been fired. 
That man has not resigned. That man continues to hold his 
office, which is an affront to everybody, not just preachers, 
but also students and anybody that traffics in truthful intellectual 
property. As we look at the history of 
the church, the Roman Catholics moved the pulpit to the side 
and put the altar in the center. Thankfully, at the time of the 
Protestant Reformation, they removed the altar and put the 
pulpit in the center. That was not just because that 
was the best place for the pulpit, but that communicates something. 
The worship of God is focused upon the Word of God. We are 
a people of the Book, and God has been pleased to bless preaching 
for the salvation of great multitudes, and we have reason to believe 
that He will continue to do so in the future. So this message 
is a word for preachers and for those who hear them. I wanna 
first look at the necessity of the word of God in a general 
sense, and then secondly, the primacy of the preaching of the 
word of God. My argument is not that you can't 
be saved just by reading your Bible. You can't be saved just 
by attending family devotions. You most certainly can. Romans 
10, 17 says, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. 
So if you're reading your Bible, your parents are reading your 
Bible, or a friend is reading the Bible, that is the means 
by which the Spirit enables persons to come to a saving knowledge 
of the Lord Jesus. But the emphasis on preaching 
is pretty obvious as we move our way from the book of Genesis 
to the book of Revelation. God used prophets. In Deuteronomy 
chapter 18, he cautioned the nation of Israel from going after 
the things that the pagans around them used. They used witchcraft, 
they used soothsayers, they used necromancers, they used those 
kinds of things, and Israel was forbidden from that. They were 
given prophets that would communicate to them the word of the living 
and true God. Jesus, as I pointed out this 
morning, the primary emphasis of his ministry was to give himself 
as an atonement for our sins. In other words, it was redemptive 
in nature. But a secondary emphasis of his 
ministry was that of preacher. Remember when he embarks on his 
public ministry, he says, repent for the kingdom of heaven is 
at hand. When the apostles are converted, they're called into 
service. Yes, they're given authority by Christ to heal people and 
to cast out demons, but their emphasis as well was to preach. 
When we go to the pastoral epistles of 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and 
Titus, the emphasis does not fall upon the supernatural sign 
gifts. The emphasis is not on tongue 
speaking, the emphasis is not on prophesying as a means by 
which God reveals himself to the churches, but the emphasis 
is on sound doctrine and the preaching of it. In fact, here 
in 2 Timothy 4, verse 2, This is the last official command 
that the Apostle Paul gives to the church as church. There are 
other things in the latter half of chapter 4 that are specific 
with reference to him and Timothy, but in terms of a corporate command, 
the last epistle written by the Apostle Paul signs off this way. Preach the word, be ready in 
season and out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort with all long 
suffering and teaching. So there is a great emphasis 
in scripture on the proclamation of truth. Now, in terms of the 
necessity of the word of God, God reveals himself in two ways. In the first place, there is 
what's called general revelation. And in the second place, there 
is what's called special revelation. We see both aspects there in 
Psalm 19. The heavens declare the glory 
of God. The heavens declare the majesty 
of God. The heavens declare the righteousness 
of God. In other words, when we look 
at the created order, according to Paul as well in Romans chapter 
1, it tells us something about God Most High. It tells us something 
about His perfections. It tells us something about His 
deity. It tells us as well that it's righteous with God to judge 
those who are rebellious against Him. So general revelation is 
the book of nature. But then special revelation is 
the book of redemption. We have that in Genesis to Revelation. And you see a constant emphasis 
on special revelation as the means by which sinners are saved. Our confession in chapter 1, 
paragraph 1, says the Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, 
and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience. 
Although the light of nature and the works of creation and 
providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power 
of God as to leave men inexcusable, yet they are not sufficient to 
give that knowledge of God and His will which is necessary unto 
salvation. So general revelation does what 
God intended for it to do. Special revelation is necessary 
because of man's condition. In Adam, all die. When we look 
at the created order, we don't learn of blood atonement. When 
we look at the created order, we don't learn of hypostatic 
union. When we look at the created order, we don't learn of the 
necessity of Christ being crucified and resurrected for our sin. 
So special revelation is absolutely crucial with reference to the 
salvation of sinners. We simply cannot expect the heathen 
to come to a saving knowledge unless we send preachers to go 
and testify concerning salvation by grace through faith in Christ 
Jesus our Lord. So again, this emphasis in the 
New Testament specifically in terms of the absolute necessity 
for the Word of God for salvation. You see it in Romans 1, 16. The apostle says, I'm not ashamed 
of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for 
everyone who believes. He says, for in it, the righteousness 
of God is revealed from faith to faith. In other words, it's 
in the gospel that you learn about not only the perfection 
of God in terms of righteousness, but with reference to that righteousness 
that God demands and that he supplies to us in and through 
the person of his son. You see that emphasis in chapter 
10, as I've already mentioned, and we'll look at it in more 
detail. 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 1 to 4, the apostle 
rehearses the gospel, and he says, by which you are saved, 
having believed on it. You see that emphasis in Ephesians 
1, 13 and 14, 2 Timothy 3, 15 and 16, James 1.18, of his own 
will, he brought us forth by the word of truth. So it is the vehicle by which 
the Spirit comes and blesses sinners to the saving of their 
soul. And then 1 Peter chapter 1 and 
verse 23. So we have this necessity of 
the Word of God that is all throughout Scripture. Now in terms, secondly, 
of the primacy of the preaching of the Word, turn first to Romans 
chapter 10. We'll just walk our way through 
three passages just to get this emphasis on preaching. Romans 
10, 1 Corinthians 1, and then we'll end up at 2 Timothy 4. 
But notice in Romans chapter 10, verses 9 to 17. I'll just read the section. That 
if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in 
your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be 
saved. For with the heart one believes 
unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made 
unto salvation. For the scripture says, whoever 
believes on him will not be put to shame. For there is no distinction 
between Jew and Greek. For the same Lord over all is 
rich to all who call upon Him. For whoever calls on the name 
of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him 
in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in 
Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without 
a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? 
As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach 
the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things. 
But they have not all obeyed the gospel, for Isaiah says, 
Lord, who has believed our report? So then faith comes by hearing 
and hearing by the word of God. So I said, let's, as I said, 
let's just walk our way through this passage. In the first place, 
the emphasis is upon salvation for those who believe in the 
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice verse nine, if you confess 
with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that 
God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. What is the 
grand assumption of the apostle Paul? Well, we don't need to 
ask. We already know because he stated it in chapters one 
to three. Man is desperately wicked. His heart is deceitful above 
all things. He stands liable to God's just 
condemnation. Paul, from Romans 1.18 to Romans 
3.20, establishes the universal depravity of all mankind. He says that they are lost. He 
says that they are dead. He says that they will ultimately 
be condemned to hell. And so here in Romans chapter 
10 at verse 9, this idea of being saved, it's not just saved unto 
a more fulfilling life. It's not just being saved unto 
a happier existence in this world. It's not just being saved unto 
a better sort of social standing among your peers. It is salvation 
from hell itself. Because the bottom line is, is 
that we have defied God. We have rebelled against God. 
In the language of the prophet Isaiah, all we like sheep have 
gone astray. And as a result, God is angry 
with the wicked every day. such that if we die impenitent, 
such that if we die unbelieving, we will hear those words from 
Jesus, depart from me into hell, which was prepared for the devil 
and for his angels. It is salvation. All of the blessing 
that God gives to his people is found in that word salvation. 
We're saved from damnation. were saved ultimately from God's 
wrath, were saved unto Him to serve Him and to love Him and 
to honor Him. Notice then that the sinner does 
not call on Christ. Notice in verse 13, for whoever 
calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. And then verse 
14, how then shall they call on Him in whom they have not 
believed? So the sinner does not call on 
Christ without having believed. In other words, calling on Christ, 
verse 13, is further identified in verse 14. It means to believe 
the gospel. It means to look and live. It 
means to relinquish any trust or any hope or any confidence 
in yourself and look heavenward onto our blessed Savior who lived 
for us, who died for us, and who was raised again for us. 
And then notice the sinner does not believe Christ if they have 
not literally heard Christ. Look again at the translation 
at the end of verse 14. It says, And how shall they believe 
in him of whom they have not heard? A better translation is, 
And how shall they believe him whom they have not heard? See, 
the New King James translates and interprets in a correct way, 
assuming the agency of the preacher, but the text literally specifies 
that the needy sinner hears Jesus. How shall they believe Him whom 
they have not heard? Now you might ask the question, 
is Jesus present when the gospel is preached? You better believe 
he is. He is the prophet at the right 
hand of God, of God most high, but he speaks by his word and 
his spirit to the churches. If you turn for a moment to Ephesians 
chapter two, you see this emphasis in another place where Paul highlights 
the importance of preaching. Ephesians 2 at verse 14, For 
he himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken 
down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in his flesh 
the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in 
ordinances, so as to create in himself one new man from the 
two, thus making peace. So Christ is the peacemaker according 
to the apostle in verse 15. And then notice, and that he 
might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, 
thereby putting to death the enmity. Now notice in verse 17, 
not only is Christ the maker of peace, but Christ is the preacher 
of peace. Verse 17, and he came and preached 
peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For 
through him, we both have access by one spirit to the Father. 
Now brethren, when you read the book of Acts and you see the 
ministry in Ephesus and you see what is happening, it's not Jesus 
physically present, but when the apostles preach the gospel 
accurately. When the apostles preach the 
Word of God in truth, Paul is able to say that Christ came 
and preached peace to you. It is a most blessed emphasis 
that we find in the New Testament documents. Christ is not some 
distant spectator. Christ is not some absentee prophet 
or priest or king. But Christ is present with his 
people when they are gathered together. And when a man is called 
to preach that word, when he's recognized by the church, we'll 
see that in just a moment, and when he does so accurately, we 
can successfully say that Christ came and preached peace to you. 
Another passage is in 1 Thessalonians 2.13. For this reason, we also 
thank God without ceasing, because when you receive the word of 
God which you heard from us, you welcomed it, not as the word 
of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively 
works in you who believe. So going back to Romans 10, verse 
14, the latter part says, and how shall they hear without a 
preacher? In other words, how will men 
hear Christ if persons don't preach Christ? How will sinners 
learn the way of salvation? How will they understand who 
it is they're supposed to call upon, who it is they're supposed 
to believe upon, unless there are preachers? Not preachers 
preaching wokeism, not preachers preaching leftism, not preachers 
seeking to be inspirational to persons, but preachers preaching 
Christ. It is in that vein by which we 
can confidently expect that Christ comes and preaches peace to very 
needy sinners. So back to Romans 10, notice 
that a preacher must be sent. Chapter 10, 15a, and how shall 
they preach unless they are sent? Now, this isn't magic. This isn't 
some esoteric thing. We know it's by the agency of 
the church. The spirit comes to the church 
in Acts chapter 13, and the spirit tells the leaders of the church 
to separate Paul and Barnabas for the work that he has purposed 
for them. It was the first missionary journey. So the church in which these 
men labored recognized their giftedness. 1 Timothy 3, Titus 
1 tells the church, we need to examine and test men to make 
sure they're fit and ready for office. So it is the church that 
sends men to this task of preaching. The spirit, of course, governed 
by and aided by the church. A same emphasis is found in Acts 
20, 28. Therefore, take heed to yourselves 
and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you 
overseers. So the Spirit works in, through, 
and with the church in order to identify qualified men, to 
set those men apart, to ordain them into gospel ministry, and 
then to set them on a path of usefulness in the kingdom of 
Christ. Notice that Paul in Romans 10 
then gives a description of the faithful preacher. I've often 
said that my brother-in-law has beautiful feet. I don't know 
that physically. I don't think I've ever looked 
at his feet, though at some point I'm sure I've seen them. But 
with reference to this text, It was my brother-in-law who 
brought the message of Christ and Him crucified to me. That 
man will always have a special esteem in my heart because he 
was the one with beautiful feet that God sent to me to hear the 
gospel. Notice in 15b, as it is written, 
how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of 
peace, who bring glad tidings of good things. That's a conflation, 
both Isaiah 52.7 and Nahum 1.15. And then the final observation, 
or two more observations, notice the rejection of faithful preachers. Just because a man preaches accurately, 
just because a man preaches faithfully, just because a man has been identified 
and sent properly by a church, doesn't mean everybody who hears 
him is going to be saved. Isaiah laments that in Isaiah 
53, one Lord who has believed our report. So Isaiah the prophet 
understood something about the frustration of Christian ministry 
that went unrewarded in terms of souls. In fact, that was announced 
to him in his call to the prophetic ministry in Isaiah 6. God says, 
I'm going to send you to these people and they're not going 
to hear you. They're not going to listen to you. They're not 
going to believe. They're not going to repent. In other words, 
God said to Isaiah, your ministry is ultimately going to be one 
of condemnation. Now Jonah is just the opposite. 
God says to Jonah, I'm gonna send you to the Ninevites, and 
they're actually gonna repent. But Jonah gets angry with God 
over that very fact. You can't figure people out sometimes. 
God blesses, and nevertheless, he's angry with the Lord. So 
just because there are God-sent preachers doesn't necessarily 
mean every single person will be saved who hears them. And 
then he caps this off in verse 17 with this maxim. So then faith 
comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. To summarize, 
John Murray writes, the main point is that the saving relation 
to Christ involved in calling upon his name is not something 
that can occur in a vacuum. It occurs only in a context created 
by proclamation of the gospel on the part of those commissioned 
to proclaim it. So in other words, how shall 
they hear Him whom they have not believed? Or rather, how 
shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? Now notice, 
secondly, turn to 1 Corinthians 1. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. I hope you're saying, oh, these 
are familiar passages. They ought to be familiar. There's a reason why familiar 
passages should be familiar, because they carry so much weight. 
Not that all of scripture doesn't, but there are certain passages 
very instructive for church life. Notice the context. It is reaching 
God. It is being accepted by God. Notice in verse 21, for since 
in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God. So man relying on Socrates and 
Plato and Aristotle may have figured out a lot of good things 
about a happy life in this lower world. But men relying on Socrates, 
Plato, and Aristotle would ultimately end in hell. For since in the 
wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, Now 
in this is not a condemnation of wisdom, it's not a condemnation 
of philosophy, it is rather a commendation of the foolishness of the message 
preached. Notice Paul goes on to say, for 
since in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not 
know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message 
preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign and Greeks 
seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified. to the Jews, 
a stumbling block, and to the Greeks, foolishness. But to those 
who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of 
God and the wisdom of God." So just a few observations in this 
particular section. In the first place, it is the 
foolishness of the message preached. I think, concretely, objectively, 
it is the content of the message. In other words, it's the content 
of the message, the life, the death, and the resurrection of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. But nevertheless, the content 
of that message is delivered through preaching. It is delivered 
through proclamation. It is delivered through the sorts 
of men that are identified, according to 1 Timothy 3, Titus chapter 
1, sent by the church on the task to proclaim the gospel. 
Notice secondly, that preaching pleases God. Verse 21b, it pleased 
God through the foolishness of the message preached to save 
those who believe. For those churches who want to 
move the pulpit, for those churches who want to substitute something 
for the pulpit, for those churches who want to engage in a whole 
host of strategies to try to reach lost men, remember this, 
Preaching pleases God. Notice thirdly that preaching 
does not please the natural man. Preaching does not please the 
natural man. Look at verse 22. For Jews request 
a sign and Greeks seek after wisdom. In other words, God is 
pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save 
those who believe. Preaching pleases God, but when 
it comes to the Jews, they want signs. When it comes to the Greeks, 
they want wisdom. What is that saying? They're 
not pleased by preaching. The carnal man doesn't thrive 
on the proclamation of the truth of God's Word. I had a conversation 
recently about the planting of a church and someone said, with 
reference to the planting of said church, will there be opposition 
to this? I said, of course there will. 
Do you think people want to go into a church and hear that they're 
miserable, God-hating, hell-deserving sinners, and their only hope 
rests on the Son of Man who lived, who died, and who was raised 
again? Do you think sinners want that? We have that parable of 
the soils in Luke 8, where the birds come down and pick up the 
seed and they take it away. Jesus uses that analogously to 
the devil. The devil is like the bird. He 
comes and he takes the seed. Last person's here and they believe 
and they are saved. Of course, there's gonna be opposition. The devil hates churches that 
actually take seriously the mandate to preach the gospel. The world 
hates churches that take seriously the mandate to preach the gospel. But oftentimes, even the church 
hates churches that take seriously the mandate to preach the gospel. Oh, that's just old-fashioned. 
Oh, that's not the way we reach people. Oh, don't you know this 
is the 21st century? Oh, don't you know that you can 
catch more flies with honey than by preaching hellfire and damnation? We always want to redo what God 
has ordained. We always want to substitute 
in the place of God-wrought means those things that are appealing 
to the flesh. So yes, there will be opposition 
to any church worth its salt in terms of proclamation of truth. 
So preaching pleases God, preaching does not please the natural man, 
but notice fourthly, preachers nevertheless preach. Okay, so 
Jews request signs and the Greeks want wisdom. So what do Paul 
and his companions do? Do they relinquish the pulpit? 
Do they say we've got to conjure signs? Do they say we've got 
to study Socrates and Plato and Aristotle? Do they say we've 
got to meet them at their own place and try to reason with 
them in their own cultural milieu? No! Nevertheless, we preach. Even though the carnal man does 
not want it, the man of God still preaches. Notice the connection. Verse 22, for Jews request a 
sign and Greeks seek after wisdom. But we preach Christ crucified. Paul, they don't want that. but 
we preach Christ crucified. Paul, they want signs, but we 
preach Christ crucified. Paul, they want wisdom, but we 
preach Christ crucified. What is Paul saying? It's not 
the hearers that determine the medium. It's not the hearers 
that determine the agency of delivery. It's not the hearers 
that determine how gospel ministry is to be conducted. It's God 
the Lord. And God the Lord is well pleased 
through the foolishness of the message preached to save those 
who believe. So we side with God for whom 
preaching is a blessing. And then finally, notice the 
preaching or the fact that preaching is the means to declare Christ, 
who is the power of God and wisdom of God. So verse 23 again, we 
preach Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling block and to 
the Greeks foolishness. I think I've told you before, 
they have found early sort of writings on the wall. It's not 
just in, you know, nasty bathrooms and in rest stops where people 
write on bathroom walls, but that was happening in the Roman 
empire as well. And they had found, I think it 
was in a Roman jail where there was a picture of a man with a 
donkey's head. and he was on a cross, and that's 
how they depicted the Lord Jesus Christ. As far as the Romans 
were concerned, this was just abject foolishness. As far as 
the Jew was concerned, this was a scandal. This was a stumbling 
block. A crucified Messiah for the first 
century, Christ rejecting Jew? That was a scandal to them, and 
that's why Paul underscores this. Nevertheless, we preach Christ 
crucified to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, 
but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ 
the power of God and the wisdom of God. And then turn to 2 Timothy 
chapter 4 for one more passage dealing with the primacy of preaching. 
Again, I always feel I need to qualify that. Primacy of preaching 
does not mean you can't read your Bible or hear the Bible 
read and be saved. Faith comes by hearing and hearing 
by the Word of God. So whatever the way the Spirit 
gets that Word of God into your heart, that is crucial. But when 
you see this emphasis in the New Testament on church life 
and proclamation of truth in church life, we see the primacy 
of preaching. So notice in 2 Timothy 4, the 
command is very clear, very easy in verse 2. Preach the word. 
As I said, the last corporate command that the apostle gives, 
not be the most handsome guy, Timothy, be the most gregarious 
guy, Timothy, be the guy that is always available to have coffee 
with everybody, Timothy. No, preach the word. Not that 
pastors don't do more than preach the word, but they're never to 
do less. Not that they don't do more, 
but they're never to do less. This is the job, the proclamation 
of the truth. Preach the word. And not only 
does Paul give the command, but he gives the manner in which 
the command is to be realized. So he says, preach the word, 
and then he speaks to timing. Be ready in season and out of 
season. There's one of two ways we can 
accept that or understand that rather. In the first place, it's 
Timothy's season. when he's ready, when he's studied, 
when he's prayed, when he's, you know, done his work, and 
his sermon's in his folder, and he steps behind the pulpit, and 
he's ready to throw down. Or in those times where a crowd 
of people happen to gather together, and they say, hey, Timothy, what 
must we do to be saved? He didn't have that same type 
of preparation. He didn't have the same sort 
of backdrop. And yet, nevertheless, he's supposed 
to preach the word. Or it has to do with the season 
with the church. Be ready in season and out of 
season. I think that verse 3 indicates 
that this is probably the better understanding. For the time will 
come when they will not endure sound doctrine. There will be 
those kinds of seasons in the context of the Church of the 
Lord Jesus Christ when they won't endure sound doctrine. They'll 
want wokeism. They'll want leftism. They'll 
want social justice warriorism. They'll want all those other 
things. They'll want inspiration, not instruction. They'll want 
encounters and experience, not doctrine. They'll want ecstasy 
versus exegesis. So it's probably a reference 
to the church's time. Whatever season the church happens 
to find herself in. Whether she's doing well, preach 
the word. Whether she's not doing well, 
preach the word. But then notice he specifies 
the manner. Convince, rebuke, exhort. In other words, this isn't to 
be a fireside chat. This isn't supposed to be some 
sort of a buddy session. This isn't supposed to be some 
sort of encounter group. The K-roots, the preacher, the 
herald, would come into the town and would declare whatever the 
king had told him. That's the function of the Kerouks 
in terms of the New Testament. He is a herald. He is the man 
of God to cry aloud, to spare not, and to lift up his voice 
like a trumpet. He has to rebuke. This word presupposes 
the existence of sin. We have to rebuke. Why? Because 
we need that in order to find remedy. Timothy is to rebuke, 
censure, or prevent an action and bring it to an end. But it's 
not, I'm sorry, convince first, to prove with demonstrative evidence, 
to convict, to reprove. I shouldn't skip that. Brethren, 
you need to be taught. Not all teaching is preaching, 
but all preaching is teaching too. In other words, it needs 
to be exegesis. It needs to be exposition. It 
needs to be instruction from the text. The best encouragement 
that a pastor or preacher can ever hear is somebody saying, 
oh, I understand that text now. Or, oh, I see where you got your 
outline. Or, oh, I see it, it's right 
there in scripture. That's the job, that's the emphasis. So back to this word convince. 
The actual word means, with reference to the manner, to prove with 
demonstrative evidence, to convict, to reprove. In other words, state 
the case. Remember that scene in Acts chapter 
6 where Stephen meets up with those Hellenists, and Stephen 
bested them. They could not prevail. So they 
then have to turn to false accusation. They then have to turn to, oh, 
he spoke ill against Moses in the temple. They then had to 
turn him over to the Sanhedrin, who which ultimately executed 
him. Brethren, if you have to kill 
your opponent, they've bested you intellectually. That is simply 
the bottom line. So he is to convince, he is to 
rebuke again, to censure or prevent an action and bring it to an 
end. But as well, notice to exhort, to urge, to encourage, to admonish. You don't leave sinners laying 
broken and battered and bruised in the ground. You convince them 
what the text says, you rebuke them for their departure from 
it, but you exhort them, you tell them what God would have 
for them, you point them back to the cross of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, and you seek to apply that balm of Gilead. But then 
notice as well, there needs to be patience. He says, preach 
the word, be ready in season and out of season, convince, 
rebuke, exhort with all long suffering. Long suffering means 
simply that. It means to suffer long. It means 
to have patience. Rome was not built in a day. 
Any faithful church is not built in a day. There has to be patience 
on the part of gospel ministry. Every time that persons try to 
short circuit this, they end up in misery. We need to do what 
God says in the way that God says to do it. We don't say, 
well, you know, it would be so much better to market research. 
It'd be so much better to walk through the neighborhood and 
ask people what they want in a church and then take that data 
and put it together and then tailor a church from that. Brethren, 
if that's what happens, that's not going to be a church. It's 
going to be a social club, it's going to be a gathering of people 
that want nothing to do ultimately with a sovereign holy God and 
with a crucified and risen Savior. We cannot do it in that manner, 
so patience needs to be in place. Paul speaks to this on a couple 
of occasions. Why do you think that is? Why do you think he 
repeats in several places to greet one another with a holy 
kiss? because we don't do those things. And we need to be told 
over and over again, not to do those things. Now, as Asheoble 
said, there'll be no holy kissing here. But in terms of the patience 
emphasis, look back at 2 Timothy 2, verse 24. Servant of the Lord 
must not quarrel, but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, 
in humility, correcting those who are in opposition. Really, 
God? You mean we can't just give them 
a good shake? We can't just scream at them and yell at them. We 
can't slap them. I'm not speaking physically, 
I'm speaking spiritually, metaphorically. We can't just give them a good 
shake so that, no, the servant of Christ must be Christ-like 
in his service to Christ. If he's not, he is betraying 
the calling that has been placed upon him. So again, verse 24, 
a servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but be gentle to all, 
able to teach, patient, in humility, correcting those who are in opposition, 
if God perhaps will grant them repentance so that they may know 
the truth and that they may come to their senses and escape the 
snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his 
will. And then notice in 3.10, But 
you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, 
faith, long-suffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, 
which happened to me at Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, what persecutions 
I endured." So the man of God is to preach the Word, is to 
be ready in season and out of season. He is to convince, rebuke, 
and exhort with all long-suffering, and there it is again. Teaching. 
It's not just a rah-rah session. It's not just a, we've got to 
get everybody ginned up and we've got to get everybody ready to 
go out and do battle for the kingdom of God. We've got to 
do that, but it has to come because of the truth. because of the 
proper exegesis of scripture. We don't bypass the head going 
to the heart. We affect both with the word 
of truth, such that when the people of God are fired up to 
do what God calls them to do, it's because the Bible says so. 
So as I said, not all teaching is preaching, but all preaching 
better include teaching. And then, well, before and then, 
I want to read Martin Lloyd-Jones here. He says, what is preaching? Logic on fire. Eloquent reason. Are these contradictions? Of 
course they are not. Reason concerning this truth 
ought to be mightily eloquent, as you see it in the case of 
the Apostle Paul and others. It is theology on fire. And a theology which does not 
take fire, I maintain, is defective theology, or at least the man's 
understanding of it is defective. So Paul gives the command, verse 
two, he gives the manner by which the command is to be carried 
out, verse two, and then he gives two reasons for the command. 
The first is found in verses three to five, and the second 
is found in verses six to eight. The second we'll take up first. 
Notice it is the departure of Paul. Why does Paul want Timothy 
to preach the word? Why does Paul want Timothy to 
be ready in season and out of season? Why does Paul want Timothy 
to convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching? 
Verse 6, for I am already being poured out as a drink offering, 
and the time of my departure is at hand. The older pastor 
that's about to die, the older apostle that knows he's going 
to die at the hands of Nero, is telling his young protege 
to preach the word. In fact, Timothy, the last thing 
I have to say to you with reference to a corporate application in 
the life and context of the church is to preach the word. Paul is 
going to die. So Paul therefore passes the 
baton on to Timothy so that Timothy and others like him can preach 
the word. Why? Because God is pleased through 
the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. So it's the departure of Paul 
as the second reason, but the first is the departure of the 
church. Notice in verses three to five. 
He says, the command, preach the word, gives the manner, convince, 
rebuke, exhort, and then verse three. Notice it starts with 
four, just like verse six starts with four. That means reason, 
that means explanation, that means rationale. So in verse 
three, 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." So it's a very simple argument. The time will come, 
Timothy, when they won't want what you're going to give them. 
But that doesn't matter, Timothy. They're not the ones that get 
to call the shot. None of us say to our children, 
you can have candy all day long. You can have all the candy you 
want. If it's candy you want and you keep expressing that, 
we're going to keep shoving it down your gullet. We're going 
to shove so much sugar down your throat that you're going to bounce 
off the ceiling. You're going to bounce from wall 
to wall. We would never do that. You need protein, you need fat, 
you need roughage, you need good macronutrients in your life. 
You are not the determiner of a good sound diet when you're 
five years old. You're not a good determiner 
of a good sound diet when you're a sinner. You are not the one 
who is able to rightly understand and rightly speak to and provide 
remedy to the church of Jesus Christ. No, we're supposed to 
simply listen. We're supposed to obey. We're 
supposed to do what God has called us to do. So the time will come 
when they will not endorse sound doctrine. And the antidote to 
that is to preach sound doctrine. Spurgeon on Matthew 4.9 says, 
may thy church never yield to the world with the idea of setting 
up the kingdom of Christ in a more easy and rapid manner than by 
the simple preaching of the gospel. Now in terms of confessional 
statements, listen to these. The Didache, it's an early Christian 
manual dated around AD 100. My child, remember night and 
day the one who preaches God's word to you. For wherever the 
Lord's nature is preached, there the Lord is. Our confession in 
chapter 14 says the grace of faith, whereby the elect are 
enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is the work of 
the Spirit of Christ in their hearts. and is ordinarily wrought 
by the ministry of the Word, by which also and by the administration 
of baptism in the Lord's Supper, prayer, and other means appointed 
of God, it is increased and strengthened." Again, brethren, there's no simple 
path to holiness. There's no simple path to a life 
of obedience. There's no simple path to sanctification. It is the intake of God's Word, 
accompanied by the Spirit, working upon our hearts and conforming 
us daily unto the image of Jesus Christ. Beware of the man who 
comes with the simple antidote to your holiness. Beware of the 
second work of blessing or the second work of grace. Beware 
of those trends in the context of the history of the church 
where persons have wanted to short-circuit the means and methods 
that God has demanded in terms of church life. Westminster Larger, 
number 155. How is the Word made effectual 
to salvation? The Spirit of God makes the reading, 
but especially the preaching of the Word, an effectual means 
of enlightening, convincing, and humbling sinners, of driving 
them out of themselves and drawing them unto Christ, or conforming 
them to His image and subduing them to His will, of strengthening 
them against temptations and corruptions, of building them 
up in grace and establishing their hearts in holiness, and 
comfort through faith unto salvation." Brethren, it's never a big surprise 
when persons say, I'm really struggling, and then in the next 
breath say, well, I'm not really reading my Bible, and I'm not 
really going to church, and I'm not really praying. Oh, really? And you're struggling? Wow, I 
can't imagine that. Again, it's similar to what you 
find in the realm of nutrition. If you ingest nothing but sugar 
and you ingest nothing but simple carbs and you never exercise, 
you're not going to be well physically fit. It's a very simple parallel 
and I think one that holds good. Now in terms of some final observations, 
first a longer quote from Lloyd-Jones. Yes, I'm going to quote Lloyd-Jones 
again. This is the biography of Lloyd-Jones, 
the first 50 years. Listen to what he says with reference 
to the primacy of preaching and the church relationship to the 
world. Now think about this. He lived 
a long time ago. He didn't live at the time of 
Facebook. He didn't live during Twitter. He didn't live during 
all the sorts of things that we have seen in the context of 
the church where, you know, we've got this new remedy. We've got 
this new way to reach people. We'll make videos and we'll send 
them out. We'll make movies. We'll do DVDs. We'll do all this 
stuff and we'll send it all out. Lloyd-Jones made the observation, 
the world expects the Christian to be different. The world expects 
the Christian to be different. I remember when Mark Driscoll 
was on his meteoric rise and there was this buzz about how 
great he was and reaching the grunge rockers in Seattle and 
all that sort of thing. Brethren, when people come to 
church that aren't familiar with church, I actually think they 
expect something like this. I don't think they expect everybody 
sitting with a latte and, you know, holes in their jeans and 
just chilling. I think that even the world has 
a concept of what the church is, but we've seen this sort 
of emphasis on making the church look as much like the world as 
we can, so that we can be culturally relevant and so that we can meet 
them in their needs. Brethren, if we do that, we have 
become absolutely contrary to that. We have become completely 
irrelevant. What this world needs is what 
God says it needs. So back to Lloyd-Jones. The world 
expects the Christian to be different and looks to him for something 
different. And therein, it often shows an 
insight into life that regular churchgoers often lack. The churches 
organize whist drives. That's a sort of holiday, I think, 
in England, a whist drive. Fates, which is like a little 
fair. Dramas, bazaars, and things of 
that sort, so as to attract people. He says, we are becoming almost 
as wily as the devil himself, but we are really very bad at 
it. All our attempts are as hopeless failures and the world laughs 
at us. Now, when the world persecutes the church, she is performing 
her real mission. But when the world laughs at 
her, she has lost her soul. And the world today is laughing 
at the church, laughing at her attempts to be nice and to make 
people feel at home. My friends, if you feel at home 
in any church without believing in Christ as your personal Savior, 
then that church is no church at all, but a place of entertainment 
or a social club. For the truth of Christianity 
and the preaching of the gospel should make a church intolerable 
and uncomfortable to all except those who believe, and even they 
should go away feeling chastened and humble. I think there's some 
wisdom in that particular quote. So in terms of preaching, we 
do ourselves no favor when we sacrifice or relinquish what 
God has commanded and adopted the weapons that he never has. 
Remember David and Saul's armor? He puts that armor on, it just 
didn't feel right. He took it off, he found five 
smooth stones, he took his sling and he dropped Goliath with the 
first stone. Secondly, there is a need for 
good preachers. Not all who preach are necessarily 
good at it. We want good preachers. We want 
qualified men, according to 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, 1 Peter 5. Men that 
will conduct themselves not as celebrities, not as managers, 
but as men called by God to preach the word of God for proper conduct 
in the house of God. That is the imperative. That 
is the emphasis. And certainly we don't want, 
again, inspiration versus instruction. That language is Warfield's. He says, if the whole function 
of the minister is inspirational rather than instructional, then 
no doubt we may dispense with all serious study of the scripture. And I would add to this, and 
I think it's an observation that comes out of the COVID situation, 
we need not only men who are fit and qualified, but men who 
will stand up, men who will preach, men who will do what they're 
supposed to do, men who will not capitulate, men who will 
not relinquish their responsibility when it comes to pass that the 
government says that they're supposed to. In other words, 
courageous men. And again, it's really not a 
lot of courage, just show up and do what you're supposed to 
do. If you work in any other situation, you're always having 
to show up and do what you're supposed to do. Why do these 
delicate little preachers not have to imbibe the same ethic? 
Why are they so sensitive that they don't have to do what every 
single other man and woman in the face of the earth has to 
do, show up and do your job? Listen to Calvin with reference 
to preachers. He says, At the present day there 
are many who are well nigh sickened by the very name of preaching, 
because there are so many stupid, ignorant men who blurt out their 
worthless brainwaves from the pulpit. Now, brethren, that may 
hit you hard. You may not like it. You may 
have to say, oh, Butler, don't say stupid in the pulpit. The 
new King James uses that language in the Proverbs. I feel at liberty 
to utilize it if it's in the Bible. I think it's a legit translation. I think that some of the prophets 
would make us blush even more than we ever do. And I certainly 
think Paul would as well. But with reference to this reality, 
there are men out there that shouldn't be in pulpits. I'm 
sorry, I hate to drop that bomb on people. I hate to say that 
perhaps your Aunt Betsy was wrong and you should pursue another 
way to make a living because you can't preach. This is the 
job, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, 
convince, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and teaching. 
And finally, there is a need for good hearers. If there is a need for, and God 
is gracious to provide, good preachers, then we need good 
hearers. Ryle said, preaching is an ordinance 
of which the value can never be overrated in the Church of 
Christ. But it should never be forgotten 
that there must not only be good preaching, but good hearing. 
So you might have a 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, 1 Peter 5 man. You might have that man who's 
got courage and steel in his veins, and he shows up to preach. And if you don't show up to listen, 
or when he is preaching, you're not showing up to listen, but 
your mind is a million miles away. I mean, Spurgeon himself 
could fall out of heaven occupy a pulpit and preach the golden 
words that he spoke in his earthly ministry, but if you're not listening 
and paying attention, it's to no avail. A. W. Tozer made this 
observation. He says, many a preacher has 
been warned about preaching over the people's heads. I ask, what 
are people's heads for? God Almighty gave them those 
heads, and I think they ought to use them. As a preacher, I 
deny that any of the truths of God are over the heads of the 
people. I deny it. Exactly. Why did God give them those heads 
if it wasn't for the reception of biblical truth? One final 
statement from C. H. Spurgeon. This is his notes 
on Mark 4, 24, the parable of the soil. It's got four points 
here. Here, H-E-A-R, not here, here, but H-E-A-R, here. It is your wisdom to know what 
God says. Second, hear well. God's teaching 
deserves the deepest attention. It will repay the best consideration. Three, hear often. Waste no Sabbath 
nor any one of its services. Use weekday lectures and prayer 
meetings. And then four, hear better. You will grow the holier thereby. You will find heavenly joy by 
hearing with faith. And brethren, as you survey this 
data, as you look at this material, as you consider the fact that 
God has given qualifications for elders to function in the 
capacity of ministers of the word in the church, when you 
see all of that evidence, all of that weight, you understand 
that God's heart, again anthropomorphically, is toward the saving of sinners. He not only sent his son into 
the world to live, to die and to rise again, he not only secured 
redemption, he not only applies it by the power and aid and ministry 
of the Holy Spirit, but he's raised up a class of men to preach 
that gospel such that sinners will be saved. I think it's one 
of the prevailing myths in this town under some bad influence 
that there's only gonna be like a handful of people that make 
it into heaven. Hyper-Calvinism is a departure 
from the biblical gospel. Men from every tribe and tongue 
and people and nation feel the weight, not only of the redemptive 
work of Jesus Christ, but the creation of a class of men that 
are purposed to preach that gospel of Jesus Christ for the salvation 
of sinners. It is another argument for which 
you must come to our Lord Jesus Christ in faith. Let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for 
your word and we thank you for this means that you've ordained 
for good things in the life and context of the church. We thank 
you for those men, those women that brought us the truth, that 
had beautiful feet. We thank you for faithful preachers 
in this world. I thank you for the brothers 
that we have forged alliance with over this last several months 
and pray that you would prosper these men, bless them richly 
and grant them grace and look with favor upon their churches. 
We thank you for the faithfulness of those men in Alberta. We thank 
you for the faithfulness of those men in Ontario and in places 
between as well. We know, Lord God, that there 
may not be a great multitude, that those men that are faithful, 
those men that are preaching, those men that have served you 
well, we pray for their prospering and for your blessing upon them. 
And God, we pray for all of the churches, and we pray for your 
prospering and your blessing to be upon those men who perhaps 
just opened their churches. We pray that you would look with 
favor upon them, grant them grace, grant them strength, grant them 
a commitment to the truth of Scripture. And as well, God, 
throughout the entirety of this earth, We see the blessed reports 
of Pastor Agalo. We see the long-standing ministry 
of the Hamiltons and of the Santiago's. We get encouraging reports from 
all over the earth concerning God's being pleased through the 
foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. So 
God, cause that to flourish, and cause that to prosper, and 
cause there to be more men that are fit, more men that are qualified, 
more men that are recognized by the churches, more men to 
plant faithful churches, more men to go into the mission field 
to proclaim the excellencies of Jesus Christ our Lord. And 
God, in this, may you be glorified, may you be honored, may you be 
praised, and may the blessed church of our Lord Jesus Christ 
continue to grow and continue to increase. And we ask through 
Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.