I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and now I am sure dwells in you as well. This is God's word.
I thank God.
That's the way in which Paul starts this passage, he says, I thank God. On several occasions, the Apostle Paul gave thanks to God, he says, thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Again, in 2 Corinthians, he says, thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift. He also says, but thanks be to God who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession. And then to the Colossians, he says, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Paul demonstrated a life of thankfulness to God, and he says that it's never hitched upon our external circumstances. Not one time should we only give thanks to God just because of something external.
You know, in the Old Testament, the Old Testament people love the external blessings, and that's where they would give praise and thanks to God. And Paul says it's different for us in the New Testament who now have seen the promise revealed in Jesus Christ because it no longer matters about the external. What matters is the eternal, and Paul could give thanks in every and any circumstance. That's what he says in Philippians when he's in prison again. He says this, I have learned the secret of facing plenty in a hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
He gave thanks. Do you know that thankfulness actually equals worship? Many of us never correlate the two. Are you giving thanks today? The word thanks here in 2 Timothy is actually the Greek word charis, which is the exact same word for grace.
Paul, in short, says with his head and his heart, I thank God. Why? Because that's the only proper response when someone is generous to you. And God has been infinitely generous to us in Christ Jesus.
How could Paul be thankful when he's locked up in prison behind those cold bars? How could you be thankful? Paul experienced the mercy of God's grace. Paul had acted ignorantly in unbelief. Paul had acted in such a way that he was not thankful unless the externals were lined up. And when Paul was converted on that Damascus road, he now had a new disposition.
He now had a new heart. He now understood that he should be thankful forever because he did not get the wrath that he deserved.
See, when we don't look deep into the wrath of God, we will not be thankful. Many times we just look at our external circumstances and we grumble and we complain and we murmur and we don't give thanks. And sometimes when we look at the things going on in our life, they may not be positive in our eyes. And even in those circumstances, the Bible calls us to give thanks in all circumstances, all circumstances, not some, not few, but all circumstances. This even means when things come into your life that are not ideal, less than ideal, that even in those moments we are to stop and worship God through thankfulness. This is what Paul's going to teach us from this passage, to be thankful for every circumstance in our lives.
Let's look at this passage this morning in two ways. He says, I thank God whom I serve. That's point number one. Point number two, I'm reminded of your sincere faith. Let's jump in and take a look at this passage. And I want you to see that Paul, he is a man with a heart that is molded with thankfulness to God for everything that happened in his life.
If you go back, look at the passage. She says this, I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.
Why was Paul thanking God? I mean, the Romans had already pronounced a guilty verdict upon Paul. He's waiting execution.
And Paul, at the start of the last letter of his life, says, I'm giving thanks. Even in this situation, why? Because he has a clear conscience. The Romans have found him guilty, but he knows in the sight of God through Christ Jesus, he has a clear conscience. He's not guilty, even though men might say that he is guilty.
Look at the text again with me. He says, I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors. Wait, hold on. Paul, who once was Saul, was a Pharisee. He was of that super religious sect that always gave burdens to every other individual. How could Paul say that his ancestors served God? Well, Paul's not talking just about the Pharisees. He's talking about the unbroken faith from long ago. He's talking about those who were of the promise.
You know, Jesus offered a strong denunciation against the Pharisees, because the Pharisees had left the faith and had gone into works-based salvation. Have you ever met any Christians like this? They talk about the grace of God, but they don't know anything about it. And they sure would not extend it to others. Jesus says this in Matthew 23, verse 13, But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces, for you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. Paul was one of those guys. He was a super religious Pharisee who shut the kingdom of heaven in other people's faces. He actually gives his personal resume in Philippians 4 or 5 and says, as to the law, a Pharisee, that means he kept it to a point.
How can Paul thank God for his ancestors? He's not talking about the modern-day Pharisees in his life. He's talking about Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Moses. He's talking about those that we find in the book of Hebrews. Those that were actually living by faith according to the promises of God.
Is Paul not doing the exact same thing behind the bars of prison? Giving thanks for these ancestors, the ones that came before him, the ones that showed him the true way. You see, Paul, in Romans 9, probably says something that's really controversial to his own people, the Jews. Here's what Paul says in Romans 9, verses 6 and 8. He says, for not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel.
Uh-oh.
He goes on. And not all are children of Abraham, because they're his offspring. But through Isaac shall your offspring be named. This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God. But the children of the promise are counted as offspring.
Galatians chapter 3, verse 29. Paul again restates his case. He's talking about those who have faith in Christ spiritually are children of God. When he says, and if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise. Do you see what Paul's saying? Not all who are in Israel really are saved. That's equivalent to us saying not all who are in the church are saved. That's a true fact and statement. Not everyone who shows up on Sunday morning truly is saved. And Paul says, I thank God for my ancestors, the ones who really did believe God. They believed on the promise of the coming Messiah.
Pharisees stopped looking to God for salvation, and they went to works-based salvation. They stopped looking at Genesis 3.15 for the promise. The promise of the one who would come from the woman who would crush the head of the serpent. Paul gives thanks for those who came before him. Paul worshiped the same God of his fathers. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob.
Blessed be the God and Father of Lord Jesus Christ. That's where Paul steals it from. He steals it from the Old Testament, and he brings it with the New. He says, thanks be to God for all those who truly had faith in God. That he would do exactly what he said he was going to do. You know, Paul stood up in front of Felix in Acts chapter 24, and he says, But this I confess to you, that according to the way which they call us set, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the law and written in the prophets. You know, you could try to keep the law and save yourself, and you would still be bound for hell.
If you have not been converted by God the Holy Spirit with a regenerated heart, being saved by grace. That is the doctrine, the clear doctrine of Scripture from the New Testament.
And he's thanking God that he's in a long line of people. He's thanking God for this old faith. Because this faith comes from an immutable God. A God that does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It's not a new faith, it's the same old faith. And I hope you notice that he said, I. I. I thank God. This is personal for Paul. This isn't just a we or you. This is an I. You know, this is the Christian faith.
Every single person in here needs to listen carefully. You cannot be saved through another's faith. You can't be saved through your parents' faith, kids. You have to own this faith. You have to exercise this faith. And parents, you can cultivate, you can be there to help. But you children have to exercise your faith because it's personal. It's through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Today, if you have not trusted in Christ personally, if you know a lot of doctrines, if you know a lot of things about the church, maybe even you know a lot about church history, congratulations.mBut do you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, the only way to have true, eternal salvation? Paul thanked God that it was an old faith. Paul was surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses. He's excited, he says, this is not just about me and Jesus, but it's also a whole bunch of Christians that have come before me, those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ through the promises of God. Jesus said, I'll never leave you nor forsake you, and Paul is all alone, and yet he's not alone. We are not meant to be alone. You weren't created to be alone. Why do you think we have the church services at Sterling Estate? You get older, you lose a spouse. It's easy to isolate yourself. And we are made in the image and likeness of God, and there is a community in God. There's three in one. All those who isolate themselves break out against all sound judgment. That's the wisdom of Proverbs 18.
Paul, he's not alone. He has the Lord, but he also had wonderful people in his life like Timothy that had encouraged him, had poured into him. They were ancestors that came before him, that he looks to them, says, man, Abraham actually left his home country. He left everything, even his family, and he went out following God, not knowing where he would go. How many of you have been called out to go where you'd have no clue where you're going? You're told, go out, do this.
Yeah, but God, I need you to give me a five-year spreadsheet. I can't take one step. I have to walk by sight, not by faith. There's no way.
Maybe God's calling you today to give him thanks because he's calling you to step out and walk by faith. And when you walk by faith, you will not be alone. God will bring just the right people into your life to be with you, to walk with you, to encourage you. And that's what Paul's doing for Timothy, even as Paul is locked up in prison. But Paul says he has a clear conscience. Go back, look at that text. He has a clear conscience. What is conscience? It's a faculty, an inner faculty that allows you to distinguish between right and wrong. Every single person on the face of the earth has a conscience. We all have one. And the conscience is the soul's God-given ability to reflect upon itself.
Conscience literally means to have a knowledge of God and community. A knowledge of him, knowing that's where right and wrong was established, through God. And he implants it into you. You know right and wrong. You know when something is wrong, you begin to feel it in your soul. And you're thinking, that's not right. That's not right.
But you see, the conscience is separate from the will.
Because you can have a conscience about something, but your will doesn't act upon it. Maybe you know something's wrong, but you go ahead and go with it. I've been there. I've done that.
Peer pressure. People around you. Squeezing you. Maybe even financially. Your job's riding on it.
And so you have to go against your conscience.
God calls his people from the Old Testament to go with their conscience. To listen to their conscience.
To act upon their conscience. In the book of Haggai, chapter 1, verses 5 and 7, God says, Consider your ways. Listen to your conscience. Your conscience will speak to you. What's it saying to you today? Is there something your conscience has been pushing you to do? If you know that it accords with what the Lord has said in his word, don't hesitate. Do it. Act upon what he's telling you to do.
You know, Joseph's brothers had a conscience. They sold him into slavery, and 20 years later, their consciences were still bothering them. We find this in Genesis 42, verses 21 through 22. It says this, Then they said to one another, In truth, we are guilty concerning our brother, and that we saw the distress of his soul when he begged us, and we did not listen. This is why this distress has come upon us. And Reuben answered them, Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now there has come upon us a reckoning of his blood.
Even Joseph's brothers, 20 years later, do you have a conscience? Is your conscience speaking to you? Paul says he has a clear conscience before God. Even though he's locked up in prison. Even though the world has said you're guilty, guilty, guilty. He says, I'm not guilty. And that's exactly what we studied on Friday. That businessman's Bible study. Romans chapter 1. Or chapter 8, verse 1. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. You have something that's pricking your conscience, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Ask him to forgive you. If there's something you've done against someone else, go to them and ask for forgiveness. And your conscience can be clear. Just like the apostle Paul. Even when the external world is saying you're guilty. Paul. He says to Timothy in 1 Timothy that he acted ignorantly in unbelief. That he persecuted the church. He was a violent opponent of the church. And now he can say because of Christ Jesus, what Jesus has done on his behalf. On that cross, that death, that burial, that resurrection, his ascension into heaven. He's got a clear conscience. From prison, I've got a clear conscience. It didn't matter what the court system said about me. Because the ultimate judge has told me I'm free. I'm without guilt.
Paul said, standing before that Jewish council in Acts 23. He said, brothers, I've lived my life before God in all good conscience.
A clean conscience is a powerful thing. It will encourage a man. It will strengthen a man. It will allow you to be a Christian contrarian in the days ahead. Even when Pharisees inside the church will tell you that you're guilty. A clear conscience is a gift from God above. And that's why Paul says, I thank God whom I serve.
Hebrews chapter 10 verse 22 says, Let us draw near with a true heart and full assurance of faith. With our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. Because of that sprinkled blood of Jesus Christ, we can have a clear conscience. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. If he's speaking to you in your conscience, listen. Obey. Confess if need be. But act on what he has told you through his word. And you too can give thanks to God. Great Puritan George Swinom. He said conscience is the deputy deity in the world of man.
Paul here says that his clear conscience is also associated with memory. He can remember these things. And his conscience is there moving him to remember things that have happened in the past. Isn't this the wonderful thing about being a human is God gives us a conscience.
This may be controversial. So just bear with me for a second. I know I've never said anything controversial. Not once.
But dogs. Dogs don't have a conscience or a memory.
The other day, I left the house. I came back in 10 minutes. That dog acted like he had never seen me before. Wagging his tail, happy as all get out. Like he hadn't seen me in weeks. Hey master, how are you?
And the joy that we get and we receive from those animals. They're wonderful, but they don't have a conscience and their memory is pretty pathetic.
But we do. We do remember things. We do have a conscience that God speaks to. And Paul says here, I'm remembering these things. I'm remembering the stuff that happened in the past. And it's nailed to the cross. That's good. It's nailed to the cross. I don't have to bear that load anymore. I can give it to Christ. And I can have a clear conscience. You know, one day there will be a judgment. And you will either be excused or accused. Why not start today? By clearing your conscience. And taking it to the Lord.
The last time Paul saw Timothy, there was something branded in his mind. What was it? Tears. Go back, look at the text. He says, as I remember your tears, I long to see you. That I may be filled with joy. When Paul departed from Timothy, Timothy wept.
Paul had played such a key role in the life of Timothy. Maybe you've had a Paul in your life before. Someone who played such a vital role. Who maybe led you to Christ. Who discipled you. Who cared for you. Who prayed for you.
Timothy wept because he knew that Paul was so bold in his faith. He was not going to back down to anyone. No fear of man inside of the man Paul. He was going to push and push and push for the gospel of Jesus Christ. And Timothy knew there were going to be some that didn't like it. And that ultimately Paul would probably have to face execution. And that's exactly what Timothy's receiving in this letter. A farewell letter from the one man he loved the most. And you know, men don't cry unless they really love something dearly.
I know there's some of you in here that have told me you never saw your dad cry until maybe your mother passed away. Or maybe their mother passed away. Or their grandmother passed away.
Behind bars, don't you think that Paul had to shed some tears at some point?
He looks back and they're not tears of sorrow and grief. Like, oh, poor pitiful me, I'm locked up in prison. They're tears of joy.
Tears of joy to see God's faithfulness.
Paul was nothing special on the outside. Yes, he must have been a towering intellect because of the books of the Bible that he wrote. But he was also carried along by the Holy Spirit. But Paul was used mightily by God through all those missionary journeys. He kept preaching the gospel and people kept coming to faith. Yes, there was the adverse effect as well. But Paul could not believe God's faithfulness. Great is thy faithfulness, O God. And he remembers Timothy's tears for him. And why Timothy cried for Paul? Because Paul is the one who had changed Timothy's life for eternity. Because he shared the gospel of Jesus Christ. And God the Holy Spirit worked this new faith. How about you? When you think about those who led you to the Lord, those who've walked with you, do you ever shed a tear because you think of how much they must have loved you to tell you the truth?
You thought you were walking to a sunny beach trip.You're actually walking to the gates of hell. Until they, as jars of clay, ambassadors for Christ, making the appeal to you to turn. Maybe it was your mother, maybe it was your father, your grandparents, uncles, aunts. Maybe it was a friend. Maybe it was a complete stranger. I'm thankful for a crazy guy in Athletes in Action who met with me after a practice at the University of South Carolina. I'm thankful for a man named Adam Everett who walked me across the field.
That's a love. An eternal love.
Look, we can have all kinds of nice things in this world. Oh, thank you for this gift, thank you for that gift. Those are wonderful things. But the gift of salvation is the greatest of all gifts. And if you've never wept over your salvation, you might want to consider if you're actually saved. Because it will make you weep in the sight of a God who would be so gracious and so merciful that he would send his only begotten son for you, personally you, to die on that cross. So that you don't spend eternity at a lake of burning fire and sulfur. That's what the Bible tells us. The psalmist tells us, you have kept count of my tossings and put my tears in your bottle.
Hmm.
Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning. There will be that great resurrection morning for all of us who are in Christ Jesus. I look forward to it.
Look, I know there are plenty of you in here that are older than me. That last night I tried to get out of the recliner. Let's just say that my wife and kids may have been laughing at me. But I'm looking forward to that resurrection morning. When Christ will return. That trumpet will sound. And the dead in Christ will rise first. That's why Timothy's crying. That's why the apostle Paul must have been crying. And that's why we as Christians have a free pass, even as men in here, to cry. Because there are tears of joy because of Jesus.
Therefore, Paul says, I thank God. But why does he thank God? Look back at the text. He says, I'm reminded of your sincere faith. A faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice. And now I am sure dwells in you as well. Why is Paul thanking God? He's thanking God because of Timothy's faith. It's sincere. It's not hypocritical. It's not a faith that he's pretending. No, Timothy was a faithful servant.
Jesus again urged all of his followers to live a true, genuine, open faith before all the people. And he condemned those who actually put on a show.
The Pharisees. Jesus says in Matthew 23, he says, for they preach but do not practice.
God hates lying. God hates chicanery. God hates falsehood.
Today, be open and genuine with your brothers and sisters. Show them that your faith is real. Act on what God is telling you in your conscience today.
And here he says he's thankful for that faith because it's sincere. Because it also came through family. His grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice. Those that reared him. Those that cared for him. Those that taught him the scriptures from a young age. That's the way he'll put it at the end of this letter. These two women are canonized. God honors these two women so much that he puts their names in the Bible. And people are still reading about these two women. Timothy's grandmother and his mother. They had a great influence upon his life.
Moms, dads. Yes, your children have friends and they will influence them. But your influence far outweighs any friend's influence. For their whole lives. How can I say that? Because I get it from the Bible.
Proverbs 22.6 says, Train up a child the way he should go. And even when he is old, he will not depart from it. You're all welcome to speak to my parents. They will tell you. They reared me in the faith. They taught me the scripture. Boy, I would have nothing to do with it. In case you haven't noticed, I have a little bit of a rebellious spirit about me. And yet, I did not depart from it later in life. Why? Because the word of God will not return void.
Keep your promises, Lord. Yes, yes. Do you see this? And maybe some of you haven't seen this in your children's life or your grandchildren's life. Keep sharing the word that will not return void. Keep praying to the God that can change hearts. And only he can do this. And you place your faith and trust in him. That he will do this at just the right time. Oh, and by the way, grandparents, you're not off the hook. Did you notice who's in this passage? Grandmother who? Lois. This meant the grandmother was fully engaged in Timothy's life. It wasn't, we'll bring the kids over. I'll spoil them and send them back home. Maybe one of the stupidest comments I've ever heard in my life. No, no. She was engaged. She was fully engaged in that boy's life, even though it was her grandchild. She spent time with that boy. She did things with that boy. She walked with him and she taught him the scriptures. That's an influence. If your hand's off, oh, not my kid, I don't have to worry about it. It's not biblical.
Bible tells us in Proverbs 17, 6, grandchildren are a crown of the age. What do you do with a crown? You wear it, you show it off. You're connected to it. Same thing about your grandkids. Get connected. Maybe your grandkids are far off. Well, maybe you need to start a telephone ministry or Zoom ministry. Whatever it is, how these kids can connect with you. Text message ministry, I don't care, something. But get engaged, grandparents. You matter.
Well, I'm retired. Retired from the gospel?
Paul says, I am sure that this dwells in you as well, Timothy. And Timothy was that second pastor in Ephesus after Paul left. And Timothy shared the gospel. And there were more and more people who kept coming to faith through Timothy's ministry. Timothy had a sincere and faithful ministry. And that's why Paul in prison looks back and says, Golly, I'm thankful. I'm so thankful to God for what he's done through my life, through my ancestors' life, but through Timothy, through his grandmother, his mother, and through all the people that are coming to faith in Christ. I thank God. Can you say that with the Apostle Paul this morning? What are you really thankful for if you were to enumerate your thankfulness? What is it? List it out. Maybe even count your many blessings, name them one by one.
We might just sing that in a minute.
I can tell you honestly, I am thankful for my salvation. Because I did not earn that salvation. It was a gift from God so that McKnox could not boast. And boy, would I love to boast that I saved myself.
Are you thankful for your salvation? Are you thankful for your spouse's salvation? Are you thankful for your children's salvation? If you pray and you never, ever, ever acknowledge your eternal salvation, maybe you should start today. Putting that as the one thing that you're thankful for. Because yes, our outer selves are wasting away, but our inner selves are being renewed day by day. We are being conformed into the image of Christ. And when we as Christians understand our eternal salvation, it will change our earthly lives. We will do things that seem so radical and strange to other people. And it will all be for God's glory.
I thank God. Amen.