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Friday, September 02, 2005
2 Timothy 4: 1 & 2: Being Ready
First impressions generally stay with us. Even if we were completely wrong about that first impression, we still can recall that impression if only to laugh about how wrong we were.
I chose to attend Dallas Theological Seminary mainly because I trusted the people who were discipling me. I mean, I knew that I wanted to get seminary training so I could be more effective in ministry, and I had some boundaries based on things I believed, but there were four I would've been pretty comfy attending. When I'd rattle off the names of the four I liked to people when I was seeking advice, everybody seemed pretty convinced that DTS would be best.
So, I went through the process of filling out the necessary forms and waiting on a letter to find out if I got in or not...while waiting to graduate from college. I got a letter about 6 months before college graduation saying I was in, and I made plans for dormitory housing and meal plans and financial aid...the whole bit.
All without ever having been to Dallas (although I had seen an episode or two of the TV show) or seen the campus (except in pictures in the catalog).
The first impression DTS made on me was the sign out front. It's made of some sort of concrete, with the simple phrase on the front: "Preach the Word."
I remember thinking that it must be a pretty important phrase in that place if they're going to have it right on the sign out front. And I wasn't incorrect in that statement at all.
In classes, professors reminded us the importance of being a faithful handler of Truth. Outside classes, they emphasized the importance of our lifestyle. In our ministries, they encouraged us to speak the truth in love, and speak boldly where Scritpure did and be quiet about the rest.
In a nutshell, that's what DTS is about: Preaching the Word. The God-breathed Word of God. Everything they did fell under that umbrella somehow.
Turns out, that's what Paul was telling Timothy to be about: Preaching the Word. The God-breathed Word of God. Everything Timothy did should fall under that umbrella somehow. Check out 2 Timothy 4: 1 & 2 from The Message:
"I can't impress this on you too strongly. God is looking over your shoulder. Christ Himself is the Judge, with the final say on everyone, living and dead. He is about to break into the open with his rule, so proclaim the Message with intensity; keep on your watch. Challenge, warn, and urge your people. Don't ever quit. Just keep it simple."
When Paul says he can't impress the following words on Timothy too strongly, he's really being serious. Other versions say he solemnly charges Timothy with Christ as the witness. Think about that. These are the words of a man on "death row" and it's even close to the end of the letter. So, you know these words are going to be very important. So important that Paul can't say it and emphasize it enough. Let that sink in a bit.
Then he tells us that Christ will ultimately return to live and rule and reign here on earth, and it could happen at any moment. That alone, if we followed it to its logical conclusion, would change out entire worldview if we applied it. Heck, it'd change the very next five minutes of our lives if we fully believed it.
Since these are strong words, and since Christ is coming at any moment to be King, well...
...tell people about it.
Preach the Word. The words The Message uses are "Proclaim the Message with intensity." The word translated 'proclaim' are the same words used to describe a herald yelling out his news in the public squares of old. We're supposed to proclaim the Word.
We're supposed to do it with intensity...with urgency.
We're supposed to keep on our watch...to be alert. Be wide-awake to what's going on in reality around us.
Well, what does this "look" like in our culture?
We're to challenge the status quo with the Truth.
We're supposed to warn people of this reality.
We're supposed to encourage them.
Without fail over the long haul.
With great patience and instruction...or "keeping it simple."
So, for today, knowing that these are the words of a death-row hero, what are some ways we can "preach the Word?" How do we maintain a sense of "urgency?" What does it mean to be "wide-awake?" How do we challenge the status quo with Truth? How do we keep the message "simple?"
Brent 3:41 AM
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