No Grace, No Guts
There is a specific passage that I want to hone in on, one that has been a starting text for many sermons. It is 2 Timothy 2:3–4, which states: "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier." If I could summarize every message I have heard on these verses, it would go something like this: "You better be a good soldier for the Lord! The way you can be a faithful fighter is by ENDURING WARFARE and not being ENTANGLED WITH THE WORLD (gotta have some alliteration)! Why are you to be faithful? So you can please the Master!!!" That is the gist of it, and though it makes for "good" preaching, that is all it does. Any preaching that gives us only half of God's truth—no matter how loud and spontaneous it may be—is of little profit. So, what is missing in this message? We have a call to action (Endure Hardness), a plea for separation (Do not be Entangled), and a reason for dedication (To please the Father). What could possibly have been left out that is so important?
Notice what Paul urges Timothy to do in the very first verse of the same chapter: "Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus." Grace is the foundation. It is the only way one can remain steadfast and set apart for God's glory. Somehow, in our personal zeal to be a "good soldier," we bypass the reality of grace and our overwhelming need for it in daily life. Do not ever forget this: WITHOUT HIS GRACE THAT STRENGTHENS US, WE WILL NEVER BE A GOOD SOLDIER. GRACE FIRST. GUTS SECOND. This is imperative. In Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus, before he exhorted believers to put on the whole armor of God, he wrote, "...my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might" (Ephesians 6:10). He went on to say in verse 13, "...take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." Truly, the first step in STANDING OUR GROUND is to be STRENGTHENED IN GOD (I know, more alliteration).
When fighting Goliath, David had no armor and no sword—only shepherd’s clothing, a sling, and a stone. Yet he boldly declared to Goliath, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied" (1 Samuel 17:45). God's name is mightier than any Philistine numskull (Goliath did indeed end up with a "numb skull" [insert drum beat here]!). David was a true soldier, not because of armor or weapons, but because his faith was in God's power and his passion was for God's glory. May we start each day by reflecting on, resting in, and rejoicing over the infinite grace of Jesus Christ. Then truly we can courageously proclaim, even in the "evil day," that "...the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD'S..." (1 Samuel 17:47).
