- Amen, all right, it's great to be here again.
First, thank you Pastor Shelley as always for sending me.
It's great to see you guys,
and man, the soul winning's awesome here.
Small group, three groups,
and one hour and three salvations.
That's really awesome how receptive Houston is.
That's a great thing.
Tonight, we're, since it's Thursday,
we can do a little bit of a Bible study.
We're in 2 Timothy chapter one.
Let's go ahead and dig right into it here in verse number one.
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God,
according to the promise of life,
which is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dearly beloved son,
grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father,
and Christ Jesus, our Lord.
So the books of first and second Timothy
are written from the apostle Paul to Timothy,
who is his son in the faith.
So this is actually somebody
that the apostle Paul won to the Lord.
It's his own convert, and he actually became a pastor.
So this has to be a very special convert
for the apostle Paul, and he obviously is,
because he calls him his dearly beloved son.
So this is obviously a good friend to the apostle Paul.
This is someone who's very close to him,
and someone that he cherishes greatly.
Let's look at verse number three.
I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers
with pure conscience, that without ceasing,
I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day,
greatly desiring to see thee being mindful of thy tears,
that I might be filled with joy.
So now we see that Paul is praying for his friend here,
and he says that he's mindful of his tears.
So it's obvious that Timothy's going through
some sort of hard time.
Timothy is going through some sort of low in his life,
some sort of discouragement in his life,
and the apostle Paul, as his friend,
really cares about him, he's praying for him,
he's saying, "Hey, I'm being mindful of your tears."
Now, the title of my message tonight
is Helping a Discouraged Friend.
Helping a Discouraged Friend.
Now, this might not be the most exciting
rah-rah type sermon in the world,
but you know what, this is a very important sermon
because all of us throughout our lives
are gonna go through times of discouragement,
and all of us, our friends are gonna go through times
of discouragement, and God can use you in a special way
to be able to help that person
so that they don't fail in the Christian life,
so that they don't get so discouraged
that they just quit or give up on serving God.
You could actually end up having great rewards in heaven
by helping a discouraged friend to stay in the fight
and to keep fighting God's battles.
So this is a very important topic.
Go ahead and go to, I'll have you turn to Proverbs,
and I'll read for you Ecclesiastes 4:9.
The Bible says, go to Proverbs 27,
in Ecclesiastes 4:9, the Bible says two are better than one
because they have a good reward for their labor.
For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow,
but woe to him that is alone when he falleth,
for he hath not another to help him up.
So God created us to be in community.
That's why we have the local church.
God doesn't want us just out doing our own thing.
No, we need each other because when we fall,
we need somebody to help lift us up.
And if you're strong and your friend is going
through a time of weakness or discouragement,
you need to be the person to help them up.
So God created us to be in community.
It's very important that we're in church
and that we're helping each other.
You're there in Proverbs 27, look at verse 17.
Iron sharpeneth iron, so a man sharpeneth
the countenance of his friend.
So we need each other in church,
and church is not just preaching.
Church is not just singing praises to God.
Church is not just preaching the gospel to the lost.
Obviously, those are very important things,
and those are the main things when it comes to a church.
You know what, church is also fellowship.
Church is also a family,
and church is a place where you have,
you should have, your closest friends.
Friends where when they're going through a hard time,
you could be mindful of their tears
and care about them when they're going
through a difficult time.
And it's funny, you gotta think,
think about the situation that Timothy was in.
You know, at this time,
it was probably a lot harder for them to have fellowship
than it is for us today.
I mean, you gotta think about how much persecution
Timothy and the apostle Paul were going through.
So they weren't able to just freely meet up
as easily as we can.
Not only that, they lived far distances apart
from each other without technology.
You know, Paul's all over the world preaching the gospel.
Even though they're good friends,
they probably don't see each other that often.
That's why Paul says,
"Hey, I'm gonna be filled with joy when I do see you."
And even today, think about this.
Where are all of our friends?
Well, my friends are at Sure Foundation Baptist Church
in Vancouver, Washington, far away away.
And in Boise, Idaho at Shield of Faith Baptist Church,
and in Sacramento at Verity, right?
And at Faithful Word.
And hey, even today, it's not like in Houston, Texas.
There's just a huge plethora of IFB churches
that want to fellowship with us
and want to be good friends with us.
Hey, it's hard to even find fellowship today.
So imagine how much more was it for Timothy and for Paul.
It was probably very hard for them.
They didn't have a phone, they didn't have Facebook.
I mean, they had, being a Christian,
being a disciple of Lord Jesus Christ at this time
had to have been a very lonely thing at times.
And even in our life, sometimes we can feel lonely
in the Christian walk, but especially for them,
you got to think it probably was worse for them
than it is for us.
So I can see maybe why Timothy was discouraged at this time,
but you know, this sermon is about how to help somebody
that is discouraged.
So number one, be a person that truly cares.
Be a person that truly cares.
You know, that seems simple,
but a lot of people today are only absorbed with themselves.
People today only care about their own lives
and the problems and their own lives.
You know what, we ought not to be like that as Christians.
Go to Philippians chapter number two,
Philippians chapter two, Philippians two,
well, I'll read for you Romans 12, 15.
The Bible says rejoice with them that do rejoice
and weep with them that weep.
You know, you're not only supposed to just
have the emotions that you feel.
You know, you should love your brothers and sisters
in Christ enough so that when they're going through
a hard time, that you're sad with them.
And when they're rejoicing, when something good happens
in their life, when they get the new job,
when they get married, when something great happens then
when they have a child, that you rejoice with them too.
You should be mirroring how each other are feeling.
Look at Philippians chapter number two,
let's start reading in verse number two.
"Fulfill ye my joy that ye be like-minded,
having the same love being of one accord of one mind.
Let nothing be done through strife or vain glory,
but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem other
better than themselves.
Look not every man on his own things,
but every man also on the things of others.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,
who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery
to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation
and took upon him the form of a servant
and was made in the likeness of men.
And being found in fashion as a man,
he humbled himself and became obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross.
So Bible says that the mind of Christ
is minding the things of others,
is caring about other people.
And the Bible says that Jesus didn't come to be ministered to,
he came to minister.
Jesus came to be a servant and you'll never be more
like Christ when you're humbling yourself
and caring about other people
and taking other people's burdens upon yourself.
That is an opportunity for you to be like Christ.
Every time someone else is having a down time in their life,
that's an opportunity for you to humble yourself
like Christ did and to minister unto them.
Let's look at, I'll read for you Romans 15, one.
Or I'm sorry, go back to second Timothy one
and keep your finger there throughout the sermon.
We're gonna be studying this chapter.
But second Timothy chapter one,
what's one way that you can carry someone else's burdens?
Look at second Timothy one, verse three.
I thank God whom I serve for my forefathers
with pure conscience that without ceasing
I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day,
greatly desiring to see thee being mindful of thy tears
that I may be filled with joy.
So Paul, I mean, he had more problems in his life
than probably any of us.
I mean, he went through a lot in his life.
He was constantly getting persecuted.
He was constantly having bad things happen to him.
Yet he cared so much about his friend Timothy
that day and night, he was praying specifically
for his friend Timothy,
and being mindful of his friend's tears.
You know, do you pray for each other like that?
Do you pray for your spouse like that?
Do you pray for the people in your life like that?
That's real love right there.
That's humbling yourself.
That's actually taking other people's burdens
upon yourself when the Apostle Paul,
he has every reason to be self-absorbed.
I mean, he has a lot going on in his own life.
He's a very busy man, yet night and day,
he cared enough about his friend Timothy to pray for him.
And that's one way we can show love to each other.
That's one way that we can encourage people that are discouraged,
is by night and day being faithful to pray for each other.
I'll read for you Romans 15.1.
"We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak
and not to please ourselves.
Let every one of us please his neighbor for his good, to edification.
For even Christ, please not himself, but as it is written,
through approaches of them that reproach thee, fell on me."
No, if you're strong, if you're fine spiritually,
if you're on a spiritual high, you're strong in the Lord,
you're zealous, you know, you feel like you're walking
the Christian life the way you should, obviously none of us are perfect,
but if you feel like you're doing okay and your brother's down,
okay well it's time for you that are strong to bear the infirmities of the week.
It's time for you to pray for your brothers if they're going through a bad time,
if they're getting backslidden, you notice they're no longer showing up to church like they used to,
they're not going soul-winding like they used to, that's a time for you not to ridicule them,
not to berate them, but it's time for you to pray for them
and to carry their burdens and you know I'm thankful I do have a friend like this,
I do have a friend like this and you know I've I've just mentioned things in passing to him
and he'll come to me like six months later and be like oh how's this you know problem that you have
I've been praying for it every single day since you told me that I'm like wow you know I have a
friend that he's done that to me so many times in my life and I'm like oh that's funny because that
problem actually got better you know it makes sense since you've been praying for me every single day
you know I'm thankful for a friend like that and I hope that I could be a friend like that to someone
else we should all strive for that level of friendship but you know what that makes a
difference in people's lives that actually does help people and you know you may you may think
that you're you know doing well spiritually but maybe it's because your friend's praying for you
maybe it's because he's praying that you don't become discouraged it's a great way to help other
people let's go to James chapter 5 James chapter 5 James chapter 5 look at verse 13 is any among
you afflicted let him pray is any Mary let him sing psalms so you know if you're afflicted if
you're going through a time that's you know full of discouragement you should be praying for yourself
you know the sad thing is a lot of people don't a lot of people get so discouraged that they don't
pray and that's where you can come in as a friend as a brother in Christ and and fill in that gap
for them they should be praying for themselves all of us should be praying all the time but you know
what they may not be doing that so if you see your friend struggling pray for them try to encourage
them by praying for them let's look at verse 14 is any sick among you let them call for the elders
of the church and let them pray over him anointing him with oil in the name of the lord and the prayer
of faith shall save the sick and the lord shall raise him up and if he have committed sins they
shall be forgiven him confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be
healed the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much the bible is constantly just
emphasizing praying for others praying for others praying for others so think about your own prayer
life what is your prayer life focused on is it always focused on yourself it should be focused
mainly on others pray for your needs jesus said to pray for your daily bread right pray that god
forgives you of your sins all those things you know what it's very important to be praying for
other people the the righteous and fervent prayer or i'm sorry the effectual and fervent prayer of
a righteous man availeth much the bible says meaning it gets a lot of stuff done that's why
my friend that prays for me every single day for a six month period when he asked me oh how's that
going by the way and i'm like wow well it's better hey it's because the prayer of that man
avails much and we can actually affect people's lives greatly by praying praying is not just
chanting like the catholic church says praying is not just repeating something mindlessly no prayer
actually gets things done prayer can actually move god to move in people's lives to do what you want
him to do if it's according to his will so we need to be praying for each other the sad thing is most
people don't pray go to james chapter four just back a page the bible actually says that you lust
verse two you lust and have not you kill and desire to have and cannot obtain you fight in war
yet you have not because you ask not you ask and receive not because he asked a miss that she may
consume it upon your lust the bible says the reason why you don't have things because you don't ask
so a lot of times hey if you're discouraged maybe you just need to pray and ask god to fill you with
the spirit maybe you just need to pray and ask god to strengthen you and to help you when you're
down he's the only one that can help you anyways he's the only one that can help your friend too
when he's down so we need to be people that actually care about our friends and actually
care about our brothers in christ and see when they have a need and whether they ask you or not
go to the lord in prayer for them hey a lot of stuff can happen a lot can be done through prayer
go to hebrews chapter 4 actually go to exodus 17 i'll read for you hebrews 4 16 hebrews 4 16 says
let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to
help in time of need prayer is the best place to find help a lot of times it's the only place
to actually find real help in this world is prayer and it's funny because the world likes to make fun
of prayer and say that it doesn't work and that is stupid and of course you know the world looks to
the government to help them with all their problems right but the bible says that you could actually
find help by prayer whether people believe that or not is their own fault to not believe that the
bible says it and i believe that it's true but remember we're studying second timothy 1 the
context of this is a man of god a pastor that's discouraged a pastor whose tears are being brought
into remembrance the apostle paul so that tells me that you know even even men of god can be
discouraged and even pastors that are strong like timothy i mean he's in the bible he's got to be a
great pastor right even people like timothy can be discouraged to the point of tears i mean there's
there's men of god in the bible that ask god to kill them because they were so discouraged so you
know what that tells me hey we ought to be praying for our pastor too and i want to look at a story
that illustrates that in exodus chapter 17 verse 8 then came amalek and fought with israel in
repudim so what's happening is the amalekites are fighting a battle against israel they're going to
war verse 9 and moses said unto joshua choose us out men and go out fight with amalek tomorrow i
will stand on top of the hill with the rod of god in my hand so joshua did as moses had said unto
him excuse me and fought with amalek and moses aron and her went up to the top of the hill and
it came to pass when moses held up his hand that israel prevailed and when he let down his hand
amalek prevailed so everything rises and falls on leadership right when moses is lifting up his staff
Israel's winning the battle.
When he puts it down, Amalek is winning.
So he needs to keep holding up that staff, right?
We need our leaders to be strong.
We need our leaders to keep doing the job
that God has appointed them to do.
Look at verse 12.
But Moses' hands were heavy.
He's getting tired.
They took a stone and put it under him
and he sat there on.
And Aaron and her stayed up his hands,
the one on the one side and the other on the other side.
And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.
So what's happening?
He's holding up a staff, he's getting tired.
So they bring him a stone to sit on.
And then Aaron's on one side of him, holding up his arm,
hers on the other side of him, holding up his other arm,
helping the man of God to be strong.
And here's the thing, Pastor Shelley has a lot on his plate.
Pastor Shelley is a pastor of three churches
and he has to keep me in line.
So he has a lot on his plate, okay?
You need to be praying for him
because hey, no matter how strong you are,
sometimes as a Christian, even as a pastor,
even as a leader, someone in spiritual leadership,
you can get weary.
And you know what?
When leadership gets weary
and when leadership quits and drops the arm,
the Amalekites win.
Everything rises and falls on leadership
and there's already too much of a lack of men of God
today in America for people to just be burning out,
for pastors to be burning out and quitting.
We need them.
We need our pastors and our spiritual leadership.
So you know what that means for us?
We need to be praying for them.
We need to be lifting up their hands in prayer
and asking God to strengthen them,
asking God to encourage them
in the work that they have to do.
They have a very, very difficult job.
I mean, they go through a lot.
It's not just preaching three times a week.
You know, it's getting the phone call
that someone's spouse committed suicide.
And then it's going and doing a wedding right after that.
And then it's doing a funeral right after that.
And then it's helping everyone with all their problems
while writing a sermon, you know?
They go through a lot and they need prayer.
They cannot just do it in the flesh.
They need prayer from us.
So number one, be a person that truly cares.
It's simple, you know what?
There's a lot of selfish people today
and we need to care about other people.
Number two, give them genuine encouraging words,
genuine encouraging words.
2 Timothy chapter one, let's read verse four.
Greatly desiring to see thee,
being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy.
When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith
that is in thee, which dwelt first
in thy grandmother Lois and thy mother Eunice.
And I am persuaded that in thee also,
wherefore I put thee in remembrance
that thou stir up the gift of God,
which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
So notice I said, give them genuine encouraging words.
Okay, he's not gonna lie to his friend here,
but what is this saying?
He's saying, you know, I remember Timothy
that you have great unfeigned faith.
Now Paul's saying this under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit, he's not lying to him.
He's telling him the truth.
He's reminding Timothy, hey Timothy,
here's a good thing about you.
Here's a great quality that you have.
You have unfeigned faith.
Meaning you have real faith, Timothy.
And he's reminding him of his spiritual heritage
with his grandmother and his mother.
And then he's exhorting him, hey,
stir up the gift of God that is in you.
And we'll get into a second what that gift is.
But the thing is, the world is more than ready
to give tons and tons of positive affirming messages today.
And the problem with that
is not that they're giving positive messages.
Positive messages is not the problem.
It's that they're untrue positive messages, okay?
And you know what, it's not gonna help your friend
if you flatter them, if they're discouraged
and you just tell them lies, you know?
Maybe someone's discouraged
because they're being punished for their own sin, okay?
You're not gonna be like, you're the greatest Christian ever.
I know you just divorced your wife
and then now you just have this horrible health problem
'cause God's chastising you, but you're a great Christian.
You have unfaithful faith.
No, that's not what Paul's doing, okay?
He's discouraged and he's giving him true, genuine encouragement.
I'll read for you Jeremiah 8, 11.
The Bible says, "For they have healed the hurt
of the daughter of my people slightly,
saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace."
So the false prophets of Israel,
the pastors that were teaching lies,
what were they saying?
"Peace, peace."
They were giving a positive message.
The only problem was there is no peace.
It was a lie.
It was not true.
And it says that they healed the daughter of my people slightly.
So you know what?
A fake false message, it's going to make you feel good.
It's going to heal you slightly.
You know, people, the world likes to say ignorance is bliss, right?
If I don't know about it, no big deal.
But you know what?
Ignorance is only bliss until reality comes and drops the hammer on you.
Then you realize ignorance is not bliss.
So these false prophets, "Peace, peace."
When there is no peace, you know what?
That's going to make everyone feel really good until Babylon comes in and takes over
and you realize that Jeremiah was right, okay?
So when I say, "Give genuine, encouraging words," I'm not telling you to just butter
up your friend, to flatter your friend, to lie to your friend, but you know what?
There's nothing wrong with a positive message if it's true.
You know, we harp on that.
The Bible's mostly negative, we need negative preaching and amen to that, but you know what?
There's nothing wrong with a positive message.
It just needs to be a true positive message.
The problem with Joel Osteen is not that he preaches positive messages, although he does
preach too many, is that they're all lies.
It's that you could just all have your best life now, and you're just going to be rich
and healthy no matter what, as long as you just donate to me.
That's a fake, false, positive message.
Go to Proverbs, chapter 26, but you think about, I mean, the messaging of the world
is always positive.
Even, you know, I've seen things where it's like, oh, don't be ashamed that you had an
abortion.
It's your body.
It's your choice.
You shouldn't ever feel any shame for having an abortion, you know, giving these positive
messages to women that have committed murder, right?
Or you know what, you shouldn't feel bad about going to bed with someone before marriage because
as long as you love them, then it's okay, right?
It's a positive message, but it's a lie.
It's contrary to what the Bible says.
Proverbs 26 verse 24, the Bible says something about a person that would willingly lie to
you and willingly flatter you.
He that hateth, dissembleth with his lips.
So he that actually hates you is going to twist truth with his lips and layeth up deceit
within him.
And he speaketh fair, he's speaking a positive message, believe him not, for there are seven
abominations in his heart, whose hatred is covered by deceit.
His wickedness shall be showed before the whole congregation.
So the person that's constantly willing to tell you that you're great, and he's constantly
willing to tell you all the positive things to you, but it's not true.
Someone says positive, positive, positive things to you that aren't true.
That person actually hates you.
You know, ladies, if you're having a bad hair day, and your friends just say, "That's
the greatest hair I've ever seen.
You're looking a 10 out of 10 today," it's like, whoa, is that person actually your friend?
You know, if you got something on your teeth and they don't tell you about it, or is that
person actually your friend?
"You look so great."
No, they're not your friend, actually.
Someone's always wanting to tell you something positive that's not true because they actually
hate you.
You believe what the Bible says?
That's what it says, that they actually hate you.
Verse 27, "Who so diggeth a pit shall fall therein, and he that rolleth a stone, it will
return upon him."
A lying tongue hated those that are afflicted by it, and a flattering mouth worked it through.
How many times does the Bible have to tell us?
No, you just got to get this in your head.
A person that flatters you is a wicked person.
I've seen it many times in my life.
Someone that flatters you always, always, always ends up being a very wicked person.
So don't be that way to your friends, please.
When they're going through a hard time, don't just tell them what they want to hear.
Tell them what they need to hear, and it's okay to tell them genuine, encouraging words
as long as it's genuine.
That's what the Apostle Paul is doing here.
Let's go back to 2 Timothy, chapter 1, verse number 6, "Wherefore I put thee in remembrance
that thou stir up the gift of God which is in me by the putting on of my hand."
So what is this gift?
Go ahead and go to 1 Timothy, chapter 5, let's see, might not be chapter 5.
It's not 1 Timothy, chapter 5.
I have it in my notes.
I'll just read it for you, sorry about that.
It's in 1 Timothy and it says, "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given
thee by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery."
So when he's telling him to stir up the gift that's in you, he's talking about that when
he was ordained as a man of God, he had his hands laid on him by other elders and he was
given a gift.
And if you've ever seen someone ordain the pastor, we'll usually pray and say, you know,
I pray that a double portion of the Holy Spirit is upon this person.
And that's what the gift is, is that it's an extra portion of the Holy Spirit given
to a man of God that's had his hands, that's had hands laid on him.
So I mean, that's a very special gift, is it not?
To be able to have an extra portion of the Holy Spirit.
And I believe that that gift is what enables pastors and ordainment of God to do the work
of the ministry because it's very hard and it's not something that you could just do
in the flesh.
It's not something that a man can just do.
Now false prophets do it all the time, but they do it poorly.
They do it with deceit.
They don't do it by actually preaching spirit-filled sermon after spirit-filled sermon and helping
people's lives and building a church according to the Bible.
The only way you're going to do that is with this gift.
You know, I've seen this, you know, even with Pastor Shelley, like when we were doing the
building construction, there were times where we're just working all day long until like
1 a.m. and I'm thinking, "How does he have time to write a sermon?
I have no idea."
And then Sunday morning he's just like, "A great sermon."
I'm like, "What in the world?
It's the gift.
It's the laying on of the hands that's enabling him to do his work."
You know, when I went to Sure Foundation Baptist Church, I was very close to Pastor Thompson
and I saw him work, put in 60 hour a week, 60 hour a week, 60 hour a week, preaching
three times a week, running a church on top of working 60 hours a week.
And I'm like, "How in the world do you do this?
The gift.
That's how.
It's a real thing.
That's why these men of God are able to do their job.
They couldn't do it without the help of the Holy Spirit."
And so Paul is reminding him of this great gift that he's been given.
He's saying, "Stir up that gift.
You have the ability to do this job.
You had hands laid on you.
God has ordained for you to do this job.
You can do it.
Stir up that gift that is in you.
Remember your spiritual heritage.
You have great, unfaithful faith, Timothy.
And you know what else?
You have a great gift.
And you know what?
We all have spiritual gifts.
Obviously, we don't have that same gift of laying on of hands, but the Bible elsewhere
talks about how some people have the gift of prophecy, some people have the gift of
discernment, the gift of tongues, the gift of being hospitable, right?
You know, all of us in this room has a different gift or talent from God, and we need to stir
that up.
You know what?
If your friends discourage, one thing you could do giving them genuine encouragement
is tell them, "Hey, you know, you've got the gift for preaching, brother."
You know, if one of my friends, if I tell them good sermon, it's because I actually
believe that they preach a good sermon.
I'm not just telling them, "Oh yeah, great sermon is actually garbage."
No.
It's like Manley Perry when he was talking about giving cards to sodomites, and he's
like, "Love to have you at church sometime.
Really don't."
It's like, that's bizarre.
You know, I'm not going to do that to my friends.
I'm not going to say, "Hey, you're really great, but I really think you're trash."
Be genuine with your words.
If you're going to give encouraging words to someone, nothing wrong with that.
Just make sure it's actually genuine.
So number one, be a person who truly cares.
Sorry, I'm losing my voice here.
Number two, give them genuine encouragement.
Number three, remind them of what the Bible says.
This is a great way to encourage someone as well.
Look at verse number seven of 2 Timothy chapter one.
Verse number seven, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of
love and of a sound mind."
So he gives them these encouraging words and then he tells them something from God, right?
And obviously he's speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.
He's literally speaking the word of God.
He's not, you know, turning in his Bible saying, "Look, Timothy, God has not given us the spirit
of fear," but he's actually speaking the words of God to Timothy.
You know what?
Obviously, we should be careful with this because we don't want to be people that are
just like giving unsolicited advice, right?
Obviously, if you're close with someone, if you have a good relationship with someone,
if you're really close to them, there's nothing inappropriate with just being like, "Hey,
man.
Do you ever think about this?"
Showing them from the Bible, right?
Now, you don't want to be the person that's just always giving everyone unsolicited advice
because the person that does that is normally the person you don't want to listen to.
It's like, "Hey, guys.
I've been married for three months.
I'm going to start a series on marriage.
What do you think?"
"No, thanks.
I'm good.
I don't want that unsolicited advice."
He's like, "Hey, I've been a parent for six months.
I'm going to write a book about all the parenting methods."
It's like, "Nah.
I'm good."
But you know what?
It's okay to show people what the Bible says, and it's a good way to encourage someone.
That's what he's doing here.
He's saying, "For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and
of a sound mind."
That also gives us an insight to possibly what Timothy was struggling with because why
would he just randomly bring up fear?
So that tells me Paul maybe knew that this is something that Timothy was struggling with,
and I can see why, being that Paul and Timothy were persecuted heavily.
It wasn't like our flowery, cushiony lives that we live where we just do our ministry
freely, although someday that may change.
For them, it was lots and lots of persecution.
So he's reminding them, "Hey, God's not given us the spirit of fear, but of power of love
and of a sound mind."
And you know, we can use the Bible as well to encourage people when they're going through
a vast array of different emotions.
Let's go to Psalms 23.
Let's look at a good passage in the Bible that could discourage someone who's struggling
with fear.
This is one of the most famous chapters in the whole Bible.
Let's read the whole thing, Psalm 23.
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul.
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou
art with me, thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.
Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell
in the house of the Lord forever.
You know, why did God give us these passages anyway?
To encourage us.
You know, that's what the Bible is to be used for.
You know, this chapter is probably used every single day in the world to encourage somebody,
because it's just so iconic.
Such a great chapter, especially verse four, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff,
they comfort me."
Meaning, like, even if we're at the point of we're about to die, we can trust the Lord.
He's with us.
We don't have anything to fear.
You know, that verse reminded me of another story where people thought that they were
on the brink of death and they were afraid.
Go to Mark chapter four, Mark chapter four.
Here's another story that you could remind someone of if they're struggling with fear.
Mark chapter four, verse 36, "When they had sent away the multitude, they took him even
as he was in the ship and there were also with him other little ships and there arose
a great storm of wind and the waves beat into the ship so that it was now full."
So the apostles and the Lord Jesus Christ are in a little ship and they're in the ocean.
There's a great storm and the waves are coming into the ship.
That's not where you want your waves.
You want your waves outside of the ship and then it says that the ship is literally full.
Sounds like they're in the valley of the shadow of death right now.
Can you understand maybe why they'd be a little afraid?
Look at verse 38, "And he," Jesus Christ, "was in the hinder part of the ship asleep
on a pillow."
That's great.
"And they awake him and say unto him, Master, caress not that we perish."
So the boat's just filling up with water and the Lord Jesus Christ is just taking a nap
because he's God of the universe.
He's got nothing to worry about.
He's got this completely under control, but they just don't know it yet.
They're like, "Whoa, the water's filling up the boat.
We're about to die.
Jesus, do you not care that we're about to perish here?"
Verse 39, "And he rose," probably stretched a little bit, yawned, I don't know, "and rebuked
the wind and said unto the sea, Peace be still.
And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
And he said unto them, Why are you so fearful?
How is it that you have no faith?
How is it that the God of the universe, God in the flesh, is here in this boat with you
and you're afraid of what's going to happen to you?
You think that God's going to let this boat sink, right?
You know what?
God is always with us.
Jesus said that I am with you to the ends of the world.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, thou art with me.
We know that God's with us.
And if God is with us, why are we afraid?
Is any storm of the ocean more powerful than the God of heaven?
No.
Is any storm of life that you're in more powerful, something that God can't handle?
No.
So why are you afraid?
In verse 41, "And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man
is this, that even the wind and the sea obeyed him?"
So they still were really, really afraid, but at least they shifted their fear to the
right person.
Now they're afraid of the Lord Jesus Christ because he just rebuked the winds and the
wave, and I can understand that as well.
The Bible's a very human book because we could really see what they were going through.
You know what?
God gave us all these stories to encourage us, and you know what, there's nothing wrong
with if your brother in Christ is going through a time of fear, to lovingly bring up these
stories and be like, "Hey, remember the story of Jesus rebuking the waves?"
That's a great encouragement for us.
I'll read for you John 14, 26, "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will
send in My name, He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever
I have said unto you."
Notice the Holy Spirit is called the Comforter.
Sounds like He's a great person to help somebody that's discouraged, and what does the Holy
Spirit do?
He brings all things into our remembrance whatsoever is in the Bible.
That's what, I mean, so the Bible is our comfort.
So this is a great method to encourage somebody that's down, and that's exactly what the
Apostle Paul's doing to Timothy.
He's speaking God's words to him, which is always an encouragement.
Go to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.
Let's look at another encouraging passage, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.
This passage is often used to encourage people if they, you know, lost a family member or
something like that, verse 13, but I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning
them which are asleep, that you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope, for if
we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus, will
God bring with them, with him.
Look at verse 18, wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Again, the Bible's telling you to comfort with his word, saying that, hey, if you're,
if your loved one is saved, God's going to bring them with him someday.
You're going to see that loved one again, and that could be a great encouragement to
us if we're going through a time of mourning.
You know, what if somebody, you know, had a miscarriage?
You could read them.
I'll read for you.
Second Samuel 12, 23, after King David's son died, he said, but now he is dead, wherefore
should I fast?
Can I bring him back again?
I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.
Saying that, hey, someday I'm going to go to heaven and I'm going to see that child
again.
He's not going to come back, but at least I will see that child again.
You know, whatever situation it is, the Bible covers that topic.
Whatever emotion that someone's going through, whatever is causing someone to be discouraged,
the Bible has the remedy for them.
The Bible is the answer.
What was the question?
That is true.
The Bible is the answer.
What is the question?
No matter what you're going through, the Bible can help you, and you know what?
You should encourage others using the word of God.
Maybe someone's just going through general trials and it just seems like nothing's going
right in their life.
Here's a great verse.
Romans 8-28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to His purpose."
That's a verse that always comforts me, knowing, hey, if I'm doing my best, if I'm putting
God first, if I'm loving Him and keeping His commandments, no matter what happens to me,
I know it's going to work out for good.
That's a great encouragement in God's word.
And you know what?
The Bible is full of these things.
So if you haven't read your Bible full cover to cover, you're missing out on some great
encouragement in your life.
You need to be reading the Bible and read the whole thing cover to cover.
Let's go back to second Timothy, look at verse number eight.
So remember he gives them genuine encouraging words.
He reminds them what the Bible says and I look at verse eight, be not thou therefore
ashamed of the testimony of our Lord nor of me his prisoner, but be thou partaker of the
afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God.
Now he's he's exhorting him to do something.
He's exhorting him to be a partaker of affliction.
Wait a second.
That doesn't sound very encouraging.
Hey, you know, I want to encourage you partake in my affliction.
Okay, but let's look at what the Bible says.
Go to second Corinthians chapter one, because on the surface it does not sound very comforting.
Second Corinthians one verse one, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God
and Timothy our brother.
So this is both of them speaking under the church of God, which is at Corinth with all
the saints, which are in Achaia grace be to you and peace from God, our father and from
the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be God, even the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of mercies and the
God of all comfort who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort
them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
Notice he uses that word "us" at the beginning of the chapter it said Paul and Timothy.
So Timothy has been through a lot already.
As we know Paul went through a lot of hardships, well so has Timothy, but he says as the sufferings
of Christ abound in us so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
I love how Paul is always looking on the bright side.
He's saying you know even though our sufferings abound that causes our consolation to abound.
Hey we get to be consoled more because we suffer more.
I love how Paul just like always has that great positive attitude you know I love people
like that.
Verse number six, "and whether we be afflicted it is for your consolation and salvation which
is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer or whether we be comforted
it is for your consolation and salvation and our hope of you is steadfast knowing that as
ye are partakers of the suffering so shall ye be also of the consolation."
So he's saying hey good news if you partake of the suffering with us you'll get to be
consoled with us so come on let's go let's go be suffer together right he's like he makes
it into a positive thing you know it is a positive thing it is a positive thing to suffer
for Christ and that's why he says hey after he's encouraging him he says be a partaker
of the afflictions of the gospel to him because guess what you get to be consoled by the Lord
there's always a bright side of things but in a very literal sense we should be happy
when we suffer for Christ we should be happy when we go through hardships for him go to
Matthew chapter 5 Matthew chapter 5 and Jesus covers this topic in Matthew chapter 5 verse
10 blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom
of heaven blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner
of evil against you falsely for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward
in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you you know it's hard to
remember this during the time you're going through it when you're going through the suffering
it's hard to remember that you're supposed to be rejoicing you know what when your family
comes after you and says that you're so hateful or that you're in a cult you know you should
really be happy because you're just racking up rewards in heaven when people at work make
fun of you or think that you're weird or whatever because you're a disciple of the Lord Jesus
Christ you know that actually should just make you jump for joy because you're racking
up rewards in heaven you know that's all very minor stuff you got to think about what these
guys went through in the Bible when they are being stone shipwrecked beat imagine their
rewards in heaven you know that's why the Apostle Paul had this great attitude is because
he had an he had eternity in his mindset and he's saying hey great we're going to be partakers
of the consolation too is a great attitude to have let's keep reading in verse nine who
have saved us and called us with an holy calling I'm sorry us back to second Timothy one not
according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace which was given us in
Christ Jesus before the world began verse 10 but now made manifest by the appearing
of our Savior Jesus Christ who hath abolished death and hath brought life and immortality
to light through the gospel whereunto I am appointed a preacher and an apostle and a
teacher of the Gentiles for the which cause I also suffer these things nevertheless I
am not ashamed for I know who I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that
which I have committed on him against that day.
So he cares about him, he's praying for him, he's giving him genuine encouraging words,
he's telling him to be a partaker of deflection and then you notice that Paul kind of changes
here to talk about himself and he's talking about how he has suffered these things.
He's not ashamed, he knows who he's believed in, right?
And that leads me to point number four, so number one, be a person who truly cares.
Number two, give genuine encouragement.
Number three, remind them what the Bible says.
Number four, lead by example, lead by example.
Paul's not just telling him, "Hey, go be a partaker of the afflictions."
Here, hey, I know what the Bible says, here's what the Bible says, but he himself is not
living that life.
No, he's saying God has not given us the spirit of fear, but a power and of love and of a
sound mind, and Paul actually has that mind, he's actually living that life, he actually
has a great attitude about all the suffering and affliction that he's been through, which
makes him the perfect candidate to help his discouraged friend because he's leading by
example, because he's actually living the life, he's actually living a real victorious
Christian life by enduring sufferings for Christ and having a great attitude doing it.
Let's look at some of the things that happen to the Apostle Paul.
Some of it are listed right here in this chapter, let's look at verse 13, "Hold fast the form
of sound words which thou hast heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus.
That good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in me.
This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me, of whom are
fie jealous and homogenous."
What's one thing that happened to the Apostle Paul?
Everybody forsook him.
Everybody turned away from him.
He had experienced that loneliness too.
He knew what it was like to be serving Christ alone seemingly and to be doing it all on
his own.
And what, did he have a bad attitude about that?
No, he did not.
I'm sure he went through seasons of depression and seasons of discouragement, but overall
he was serving the Lord joyfully.
Let's flip the page and go to 2 Timothy chapter 4.
2 Timothy 4 verse 16, "At my first answer, no man stood with me, but all men forsook
me.
I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.
Notwithstanding, the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, that by me the preaching might
be fully known and that all the Gentiles might hear, and I was delivered out of the mouth
of the lion."
So all forsook him.
But you know what?
He had a great attitude because he said, "But the Lord stood with me.
The Lord encouraged me."
So you know what?
This is a perfect man to encourage his discouraged brother here because he's been through these
things and he responded correctly.
He went through the trials and tribulations and he didn't fail when he was tested by God.
He responded the right way, making him able to help other people.
And we're going to remember that.
It's going to become important here in a second, but let's go to 2 Corinthians chapter 12.
Let's look at some other things that the Apostle Paul went through.
Let's look at verse 7, "Unless I should be exalted above measure through the abundance
of the revelations, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan, to buffet
me lest I should be exalted above measure."
So another thing that happened to the Apostle Paul is he was given a very bad physical ailment.
And I mean, that's the worst.
But when you go through physical problems, when you have surgeries, when you have illnesses,
that's the worst thing that could happen.
And that happened to the Apostle Paul.
Let's look at verse 8.
"For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me."
So he's not happy that he has this physical ailment.
He's beseeching the Lord three times, and I don't believe that's three quick prayers.
This is like three seasons in his life of begging God that this would be removed from
him.
Verse 9.
"My grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly, therefore, I will rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ
may rest upon me."
So why did God give him this challenge?
Why did God give him this time where he maybe felt discouraged or depressed?
It was because God wanted to make sure that the Apostle Paul was fully leaning on God.
And he actually said that, hey, when he's weak in the flesh, he's strong.
And that the Spirit of Christ is resting upon him as a result of it.
God wanted to make sure that he was trusting him.
And as a result, how did he respond to that?
He goes, I'll glory in my infirmities then.
If I'm able to do more for Christ, hey, I'll glory in my physical infirmities if it makes
me spiritually strong.
So when he was going through his test of being forsaken by everyone, he had a good attitude.
When he was going through his test of having physical ailments, he had a good attitude.
Let's look at what else happened to the Apostle Paul.
In Corinthians, chapter 11, let's read a good bit here about what happened in verse 23.
Are they ministers of Christ?
I speak as a fool.
I am more.
In labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths
oft.
Of the Jews five times, received I forty stripes, save one; thrice I was beaten with rods; once
I was stoned; thrice I suffered shipwreck; a night and a day I've been in the deep.
And don't just read over this.
Think about if this kind of stuff was actually happening to you, how you would respond.
Verse 26, "In journeying often, in perils of water, in perils of robbers, in perils
by my own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness,
in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren, in weariness and painfulness, in
watching often, in hunger and thirst, in fasting often, in cold and nakedness.
Besides those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all
the churches.
Who is weak and am I not weak?
Who is offended and I burn not?
If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities."
So think about that.
If all this stuff happened to you, just be honest with yourself.
Would you quit?
Probably, most of us would probably quit if we went through this much.
And he went through all of these things and he says, "You know what?
I'm going to glory in my infirmities."
That's a strong man of faith right there.
That's why this man was able to write one of the most challenging verses in the Bible.
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of
the Lord for as much as you know that your work is not in vain in the Lord."
That's a powerful verse right there saying that no matter what happens to you, be steadfast
and continue doing the work of God.
Hey, he earned the right to say that verse because he actually was steadfast and he actually
did it not only just enduring it, but he actually did it with a good attitude.
And here's the thing, go to Philippians chapter four, Philippians chapter four, let's look
at one more statement from him of how he responded to his trials.
Philippians chapter four verse 11, "Not that I speak in respect of want, for I have learned
in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content."
He's happy, he's pleased.
Verse 12, "I know both how to be abased and I know how to abound everywhere and in all
things I'm instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer
need.
And all things through Christ would strengtheneth me."
Also in Acts chapter 20, you know, he's about to go through more persecution and he says,
"But none of these things move me, neither count I in my life dear unto myself," right?
So the Apostle Paul truly was a very, very strong man, probably the best Christian that
ever lived was the Apostle Paul because of how much he went through and he not only just
endured it, but he did it with a good attitude.
But here's the thing, you have to think, the Apostle Paul, he could have just had all those
things happen to him and he could have just complained like a lot of us do, he could have
just wore his emotions on his sleeve, he could have used all of these things that happened
to him as an excuse to be discouraged, as an excuse to not serve God, but instead he actually
responded correctly and he was able to use his experience of his suffering to help other
people.
And this is the main truth that we need to understand, is that every single trial that
comes in our lives, every single time we feel discouraged, every single time something negative
happens to us, it's an opportunity to respond correctly so that you can help someone else
someday.
And the Apostle Paul, he was not just telling Timothy, "Hey, be a partaker of the afflictions,
Timothy.
You can do it.
Yay."
But he actually wasn't doing it himself.
No, he was leading by example.
And if you actually want to be someone who can effectively encourage other people, because
here's the thing.
Like I said, we're all going to be discouraged from time to time.
Don't you want to be able to actually help your friend when they go through that time?
Well guess what?
You need to be doing the work now.
You need to be building a credible life of serving God and doing it with a good attitude
now, because that's how you can actually help someone in the future.
You know, if you go through a horrible situation like miscarriage, you know, I hope to God
that that never happens to me and my wife, and I can't imagine how hard that would be.
I know people that have been through it and have had that good testimony of praising God,
continuing to serve the Lord, continuing to love the Lord, and those people are going to
be the people that help other people someday when they go through that same thing.
People who go through losing a child or losing family members or just anything bad that happens
to them, when you respond correctly, you're able to help other people someday.
So I hope that can help you guys in the future.
Like I said, this isn't the type of sermon where it's like a red hot sermon or anything
like that, but sermons like this are important because this is how we keep each other in
the Christian life for the long haul.
We don't want to be just doing this thing for one or two years.
We want to be serving Christ the rest of our life.
You know what?
You're not going to do it if you quit because you get discouraged.
So you need to be able to help each other.
When you notice your brother in Christ or your sister in Christ is going through a hard
time, hey, follow these steps to help them.
Number one, be a person who truly cares.
Number two, give them genuine encouraging words.
Number three, remind them what the Bible says.
And number four, lead by example.
Let's have a word of prayer.
Lord, thank you so much this day.
Thank you, God, that you've led us by example, that you were tempted in all points like as
we are, yet without sin.
You're just a great example to us, Lord.
I pray that we would just read your word every day and that we would be encouraged, that
we'd be able to encourage other people.
We love you, Lord, in Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.