Encouragement from Paul’s Final Words

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Sam Allberry
Welcome back to your not crazy gospel sanity for young pastors. I’m Sam Aubrey and with Ray ortlund As always, we’re so glad to have you with us. We’re looking at the final paragraphs of Second Timothy lots there to think about in terms of the enemies Paul was evidently coming to terms with the presence of the Lord with him. And a book that we are really excited about. So stick around for that

Ray Ortlund
So, Sam, as a resident of your life in Britain, we Americans love to come over and visit Britain what is one place you love to share with your American friends there in your homeland of Britain?

Sam Allberry
Yeah, that would be many but having been living in Maidenhead, which is just a few miles from from Windsor, I love showing Americans around Windsor Castle. A because I love going there myself. And there’s always more to see there than I’ve, I’ve kind of covered on previous visits. And it’s a kind of a fun way of, you know, showing my American friends, you know, what you could have had

Ray Ortlund
That’s hilarious. Okay, but wait a minute. For some of us. What is Windsor Castle, Windsor

Sam Allberry
Castle is the the permanent residence of the British Moloch. So the Monarch has various palaces around the place but Windsor Castle tends to be the sort of year round home base, Buckingham Palace is is the is the London office as it were. You’ve got Sandringham in East Anglia, you’ve got moral up in Scotland. And I’m sure other places around as well better. That tends to be that the main residence of the of the monarch. And

Ray Ortlund
just about one year ago, you took Jenny and me through Windsor Castle. It was we had a blast. It

Sam Allberry
was great fun. I knew you would enjoy it. There’s so much history there. There’s all the state rooms, all the sort of Order of the Garter stuff. And you know, the thing is centuries and centuries old. It’s the oldest, continually inhabited castle in the world. And the biggest of those as well. So there’s, there’s, there’s great fun stuff

Ray Ortlund
to see suits of armor and so forth. Yeah, yeah. What

Sam Allberry
was the highlights for you?

Ray Ortlund
Well, I loved getting Jenny, a tea set at Windsor Castle of the very kind of China that the royal family would use. And

Sam Allberry
that was from the time of Queen Victoria believe that particular edition is that style and that? Yes.

Ray Ortlund
And I I think that we Americans, especially are intrigued by royalty. I believe that who was it? Was it CS Lewis that said, there are no fairy tales that start out once upon a time there was a president.

Sam Allberry
Yeah, he said the universe is is not Republican.

Ray Ortlund
So once upon a time there was a king, as that resonates. And I don’t regret the American Revolution. I’m not wishing to take those away. But I get it. Yeah. So we love you guys. Now we’re in Second Timothy chapter four, verses nine through 22. We’re coming to the end of the letter and I’m struck by what John Stott says about second Timothy chapter four. He writes, this chapter contains some of the very last words spoken or written by the Apostle Paul, they are certainly the last which have survived. He is writing within weeks, perhaps even within days of his martyrdom. So everything is on the line in Paul’s life. He has no time to waste. Everything is consequential. Everything matters. There’s little time left. What will he say in his remaining moments as he writes to his young friend, Timothy, that’s what we have here. This is a treasure trove. What stands out to you?

Sam Allberry
Yeah, I love this. Anytime the heading in the Bible is personal instructions or something like that. I’m always interested because they it sounds like they may not know what to call, you know what to title it. But normally, we get these little bits that these these parts of the letters often feel like the end credits. It’s the kind of some housekeeping stuff before we finish the lesson. It’s too easy in you know, Netflix terms to kind of just skip ahead and go to whatever is the next book of the Bible. But there’s so many little insights we get from these personal moments of Paul, we’re getting little vignettes of what his actual life was like, and that is revealing for us. So we see something of his interpersonal life here. It’s easy to imagine Paul as the sort of, you know, Lone Ranger, going around the place planting churches, but he was so embedded in the lives of other people and needed people. So it’s striking that verse nine says, do your best to come to me soon? Yes. Paul had begun this lesson by remembering Timothy’s tears, and saying, I long to see you as if because I know you need me. But Paul also needs Timothy. And he’s not embarrassed to reflect that in his letter.

Ray Ortlund
That’s the very thing that stands out first to me here in chapter four. You’re right. I’m looking now at chapter one. Verse three. Pardon me, verse four. I longed to see you. I longed not just I want to see you. I hope to see I long to see you. Yeah, that’s how he begins the letter. And then he ends the letter. Do your best to come to me soon. Yeah. Ephesians is just as equally inspired by God. It’s a wonderful letter, we revere Ephesians, three chapters of doctrine, three chapters of ethics, follow up culture and so forth. That’s not the only that the structure of Ephesians is not the only ministry paradigm. No. It’s entirely legitimate. But it’s a both and here’s another ministry paradigm. Let me begin by telling you how much you mean to me. Yeah. Let me end by telling you how much you mean to me. Yeah. Paul was in prison. And guess what? He was lonely. There’s,

Sam Allberry
there’s a type of Christian leadership that thinks it has to be above needing other people. And Paul is an apostle. And he needs Timothy. Yes. And it’s not just because he has you know, unfinished mentoring business to do with Timothy. He, you get the sense Paul is always feeling lonely here for Dimas in love with the present world has deserted being gone to Thessalonica Christians and how you say it? Yes. has gone to Galatia Titus is in Dalmatia. Luke, Luke alone is with me. You get the sense Paul is needing to have people around him. Yes.

Ray Ortlund
John Stott points out how human these verses are. Paul is lonely. He needs a friend there with him. Yeah, Paul is cold. So Paul says, Bring the cloak that I left with carpus intro as an overcoat, I am cold, I’m shivering. And then Paul is bored. He needs to be occupied with something he says. Also bring the books and above all the parchments. He wants to read again, Sam, I remember. After my dad died, I happened upon a piece of paper in his desk, that dad loved to set goals and to get things accomplished in his life. In the last six months of his life when he was not well, he had a reading list of books he wanted to read in those in that six month period, the first half of 2007, one of which, for example, was a biography of j i Packer. My dad read and studied and kept pushing forward to the end of his days. That’s exactly what we see here. Paul never stopped reading, studying, thinking discovering, growing

Sam Allberry
and serving end of verse 11 Get mark and bring him with you for he is very useful to me for ministry. So although Paul is is anticipating the end he’s not taking his foot off the gas. He’s not sort of thinking well, I’ve I’ve finished the race therefore I’m going to spend these last weeks however long just you know having some me time resting you know, he’s he’s wanting to be productive above all the parchments. He’s just stuff he wants to write as well. Presumably, the usual

Ray Ortlund
retirement scenario as we think of it today, it just drives me nuts. That would be to me a death sentence. Yeah, if this is retirement here in a second Timothy chapter four, Sign me up. I would love to go out like this. Yeah.

Sam Allberry
Yeah, the other thing that comes through is not just Paul’s need for others but again, we see that the hardships the relational hardships Paul has gone through he talks about de mas in love with the present world has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica verse 14, Alexander the Coppersmith did me great harm. Verse 16, at my first offense and no one came to stand by me but all deserted me. So I’m sure what has has made those friendships with, with Timothy with with Mark with Luke. All the more pressures is the betrayals, the desertions, yes, that Paul is experienced as well.

Ray Ortlund
So Sam, what if we make this What if every pastor listening makes this a personal goal for the rest of our lives, we will stop losing friends. As much as it lies within our power, we will remain faithful and steady in glorious solidarity with one another, not forsaking one another, not deserting one another, not fracturing the body of Christ. I’m really struck by verses 14 through 18. Here, because Paul is reminding Timothy of some of these. Well, in the case of Alexander collisions, and the case of these people who, when everything was on the line for Paul, their to do list for that day was just so crowded, they were probably texting and Paul, were for you. We’re praying for you go. We’ll get back to you soon as we can just We’re sorry. We’re just so preoccupied with other things today. There are three human scenarios here in verses 14 through 18. One is a strong enemy. Alexander the Coppersmith did me great harm. And he also says he opposed our message, but he made it personal Alexandra did, she did me great harm. I don’t know what that was. But Alexander, in some sense, took from Paul, what he would never give back to Paul. Yeah, that was a real injury, a strong enemy. Secondly, weak friends. At my first defense, no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. Now Paul says about Alexander. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Paul gives him to God, the Lord knows what to do with him. But when it came to his weak friends, who just didn’t have the courage to stand by him, Paul says, may not be charged against them. Paul is so merciful, in the face of human weakness, people letting him down. He’s not mad. He understands human weakness. He says, May the Lord may not be charged against them. So a strong enemy, weak friends, and finally a strong friend, but the Lord stood by me and strengthened me. So that through me, the message would get out. And so I’m thinking of the apostle Paul, they’re in the court of Caesar in Rome. He’s standing in the court, there are senators standing around soldiers, the Caesar is there on his throne, maybe 10 or 15 feet away. Paul is standing there in chains. And he has an opportunity to make his case. As he’s on trial, and he’s all alone. No one else has come to be with him. He opens his mouth and begins to speak. And suddenly he senses this presence. Right next to him, the Lord stood by me. So he senses like, to his immediate right. Oh, my goodness, the risen Christ is standing here. He feels this arm go around his shoulder, this invisible arm and give him a squeeze. He hears this, this inaudible voice saying, Paul, you’re doing so well. You just keep going. I’m going to use this the gospel is going out through you. Don’t worry about a thing. The Lord stood by me and strengthened me. I think every pastor, given this scripture, we, you and I, Sam have every right in Christ. When we’re standing there preaching when we’re evangelizing when we’re counseling people, whatever it might be. We can take it by faith, the Lord is standing by us, right then in there. And we can draw strength from that. It’s amazing. It’s wonderful.

Sam Allberry
Yeah, we are never we’re never actually alone, are we? No.

Ray Ortlund
We are so not God forsaken.

Sam Allberry
But again, it’s interesting, Paul can be aware that that Christ is with him in a, you know, not in a theoretical sense in a way that actually makes a difference to Paul psychology. And he can still need his friends to come see him. We’re not We’re not supposed to take the presence of Christ, I think, therefore, are not supposed to need flesh and blood human company. The Lord stood by me and Timothy, do your best to come to me saying, isn’t

Ray Ortlund
that striking? That’s very true to life. When I have stood in the pulpit, for example, and I’m declaring the gospel. And I do sense the Lord’s blessing. I’m also simultaneously seeing people and I know that some there are really getting it. I can see it in their faces. You know, there’s they’re sitting on the edge of their seat. They’re attentive. They’re drawing, they’re drawing strength from this and it’s a both and the Lord is here next to me. My friends are there They are responding. This is totally working. The ministry is advancing the gospel. This is working.

Sam Allberry
It’s amazing how often the word desertion comes up. Oh, back in chapter one I think it was reported was about no one in Asia has, you know, they’ve all turned away. And it struck me that’s, that was one of the key experiences of Christ Himself, wasn’t it desertion? That is going to be a feature of ministry like there going to be times when we’ll just be too radioactive, in the eyes of this world for some of our friends to better cope with it.

Ray Ortlund
That’s that’s very true to life. Sam. I’m really struck by verse 18. When Paul sort of lands the plane, so to speak, the Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely that is whole healed, complete, happy, not injured, will bring the safely into his heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Sam Allberry
Yeah, that rescue is not incompatible with what will be the death that Paul is shortly to face. Rescue doesn’t mean rescued out of those things, but rescue through them.

Ray Ortlund
And then you you said something a minute ago, Sam, before we started recording about these final verses 19 through 22. Because wouldn’t, verse 18 would be sort of the perfect ending to

Sam Allberry
the book. Yes. liturgical flourish at the end. Amen.

Ray Ortlund
To me, of course, we’re at but but he doesn’t end there. Yeah, he adds something more. What what? Why do you think he did that? Yeah,

Sam Allberry
my thinking is that these greetings feel so incidental, must be theologically significant. It matters in the Kingdom economy that God has given us that people are greeted. Priscilla and Aquila need to know, Paul is thinking of them. They need to know he, they are on his mind that they are seen by him. They need to know that they’re good with him. He’s sending greetings to them. And these are such a, again, such a feature of Paul’s letters miss so tempted to skip over them. But again, they tell us something about ministry, there is a person centeredness of relationality to ministry. It’s not porous, talked about, preach the word and it could be easy to think that is we’re to be very task oriented. And sometimes you can be task oriented in a way that makes you oblivious to the presence of people around you and some of the needs of those people around you. So it just to me is, again, a lovely snapshot into the fact that Paul was often thinking of people. So he’s thinking if I’m writing to Timothy, oh, he can send greetings to present and Aquila, to householder Vanessa for us. So all of these things. He wants people to know about each other he wants. It’s gospel triangulation. He wants Timothy to know about these other people. And for them to know about that other guy over there because those connections will will make a difference in ministry.

Ray Ortlund
That In addition, it’s preached the word with relational sensitivity. That both end is right here as our paradigm for ministry today. I’m really struck by this. Right Prisca and Aquila, householder Vanessa force, Paul made individuals feel seen and noticed and important to him. It was reassuring to them and satisfying to him that it was like I want to look you right in the eye if I could and just tell you, You’re important to me. And

Sam Allberry
he flips it as well, because there are those investment who want to send greetings to you, Timothy. So there’s some of the guys I’m connecting with in this neck of the woods. They’re thinking of you as well. Again, it’s it’s there’s something reassuring about that. By the

Ray Ortlund
way, Sam, you are brilliant at this. This is Sam alberi you’re great at preaching the word and you are great at connecting people with one another. And as you travel, you always bring back greetings and I’m sure you’re conveying those greetings when you’re in other places as well. Gosh, you’re great at this.

Sam Allberry
The road has introduced me to some some wonderful people. It’s nice to have to share that blessing with others. Now, Sam,

Ray Ortlund
if you were to identify one takeaway from Second Timothy that’s important for you personally, what might that be?

Sam Allberry
There are more there is more than one that I need to take away the one that is waving at me the most. Again, I mentioned this When we were doing the D episode on up it is not to be ashamed. I feel that propensity so deeply within me. I do not need to be ashamed. I know whom I have believed Yes, and that he is able. So there’s lots of other things I should take out of the letter. That’s one of the things that most clearly is. And you know that the not being ashamed plays into the all the people who’ve deserted Paul and turned away from him was because they were ashamed. And we, you know, we will, we should expect to find ourselves in contexts where we will be the odd one out, yeah, if we stand for biblical Christianity and wear it, you know, it may not just be the sort of snooty raised eyebrows that we get in response to our biblical allegiance that may be far worse than that. It may be relationally, very isolating, even then even in the face of potential desertion and isolation. We don’t need to be ashamed.

Ray Ortlund
Well, let me say, and I’m sure I’m speaking on behalf of every pastor listening, we understand that feeling of being intimidated, isolated cornered, and there is a there’s a cowardly streak right down the center of my back. So that message, do not be ashamed. Stand with Christ, He will stand with you. Yeah, that’s, that really resonates. I think my primary takeaway is. And, you know, Sam, frankly, I know maybe this sounds weird, maybe it is weird, but I look forward to dying. At one level, it’ll be the final adventure. I love adventure, going to new places. That is good. Now, I’ll maybe I’ll chickened out at the last minute. Okay. Let me just admit that. But Paul, this is so much about Paul’s final days, weeks and moments in this world. And I’m seeing in the apostle Paul, what I see in so many magnificent Christians in the course of Christian history. Christian, you know what John Wesley said about the early Methodists? He said, Our people die. Well, yeah. That’s very meaningful to me. I really want that. And I see here in the apostle Paul, he’s not a Superman. He gets cold, he needs a winter overcoat and he gets bored, he needs books and parchments, he gets lonely he needs a friend to talk to. And that very human man also died. Well. I would like to do that. By God’s grace. Glory. Okay, well, Sam, I, I take particular pleasure in circling back to our, our crossway publication for this episode. My own son Gavin has written this magnificent new book, humility, the joy of self forgetfulness, which has just come out. We just got our copy in the mail. I haven’t even had time to read it yet. But I can say this. I know the author,

Sam Allberry
your wife, she found time to read it and say,

Ray Ortlund
um, did you have to say that? I mean, that’s the reason why I haven’t had time it was in her hands. Yeah, that was it. So anyway, I can’t say this about the author. He is the real deal. Yeah, I mean, it’s a kind of a dangerous thing to write a book on humility. Yeah. One wonders, really. And I can answer that question for every prospective reader. Humility, the joy of self forgetfulness by Gavin ortlund, published by crossway, the author, I’ve known the author literally from the first moments of his life. He knows what he’s talking about. This is authentic.

Sam Allberry
Gavin was the first ortlund I met. When was that? That was one of the TGC conferences must have been several years ago now. But I remember running into him thinking, I think that’s Kevin ortlund. And that’s before I’d met you. So he was my introduction to the Auckland family. So I’m looking forward to reading this. I have it I’ve had a chance to thumb through it. It looks wonderful. It’s very short. It’s not a heavy read. But Gavin is a uniquely gifted writer and thinker. And for those who you know, Gavin has a YouTube channel that is well worth checking out called Truth unites, is

Ray Ortlund
that truth unites,

Sam Allberry
and actually you can see Gavin’s character there he often is, is debating people from very different perspectives, sometimes people who are non believers or from different, very different kinds of backgrounds to himself, and he is just wonderfully winsome, humble man.

Ray Ortlund
He’s the real deal. All right thank you, Sam.