Jump Start # 2859

2 Timothy 4:6 “For I am already being poured out as a drink-offering, and the time of my departure has come.”

Our passage refers to time. It was time for Paul to go. His time was up. His departure wasn’t a scheduled flight. It wasn’t a place to preach. It wasn’t to meet with other brethren. He had an appointment with death. He would be tried once again by Caesar and this time was going to be his last time. Caesar would end Paul’s life. He knew that. The time was about up. His journey here was about over. It was time to close the books on what he would do.

Here we are in June already. The year is half over. “Where has time gone,” some will say. This year, much better than this time last year, is showing signs of picking up and getting back to life. Masks are coming down and hope is rising up. Churches that cancelled about everything last year, are lining things up this year. Meetings. VBS. Lectureships. It’s time to get things going again.

But the year is half over—what a thought.

First, time doesn’t move any faster today than it did in the days of Jesus. It doesn’t move faster today than it did twenty years ago. We have the same number of hours in a day. Nothing has changed in the time factor. It may be that we are just so busy and are trying to stuff so much into a day that time seems to fly by. Most would rather be busy at work than have nothing to do. But in all this busyness, sometimes we cut some corners that should not be cut.

We don’t have a lot of time to reflect, observe and meditate spiritually. Too busy. Too much to do. The year is nearly half over already. When dealing with worry Jesus tells the disciples to look at the birds and the flowers. We rush past those things because there are so many other things to get done. But, it’s those moments of reflections, observations and meditations that build our faith and soul. Just standing at a grave, as I did last week. Just thinking. Just remembering. Just reflecting. Good for the soul.

Rushing through life, we often cut people short. There are those who need to talk. Some want to vent. Some have questions. Some want to connect. Some need interaction. And, as we hurry along, we can leave people wanting more and feeling pushed out of the way for more important things. Have you noticed, just within three years, how often Jesus let people talk to Him. If anyone had more important things to do, it was the Lord. If anyone had greater business, it was the Lord. Just three years of ministry. Shorter than time in high school. Never was Jesus too busy for others. May we be the same.

Second, the year is nearly half over, have you gotten done what you wanted to? We can spin our wheels and never accomplish what we need to. The Martha syndrome is always around us. Poor Martha. She was left alone to serve Jesus and the apostles. That was a house full. She was distracted. She was bothered. And, her sister not doing a thing, really burned the biscuits in Martha’s mind. What Martha was doing was important, but it wasn’t the most important. Mary had the right idea. One can always eat. In fact, the Lord could multiply food. He had done that more than once. Having Jesus with you wasn’t something that one always had. They weren’t chit-chatting about the weather and who one the ballgame. Jesus was teaching. Mary was listening. Martha was steamed.

What was most important for you to accomplish this year? Did you have a plan or a goal? Are you driving your life or are you just allowing each day to determine what happens and what you get done? Next thing you know, it will be December, and the year will be just about over. Resolutions? Plans? Goals? Just what did you want to accomplish this year?

Third, for many of us, our lives are more than half over. Mine is. Many of us are nearly at third base and coming home is in sight. And, truth be, for most people that last few years of their lives are not the most productive. Health and age have slowed them down so much that they can’t do what they were doing decades ago. No longer have the stamina, mind power, and voice, many old preachers have to stop preaching. Their best work is now behind them. And, that will be true of all of us if the Lord allows us to live that long. The younger generation moves much faster than the older generation. The younger generation does things differently than the older generation.

And, when one starts thinking that way, then leaving examples are more important than travel. Talking to the kids about the Lord is more important than cleaning out the closet. Leaving footprints that point to Heaven is more important than anything else.

It’s June. The year is nearly half over. Someday, your life will be nearly over. It’s time to get done what needs to get done. Night is coming Jesus said, and no man can work.

Roger

Jump Start # 2212

2 Timothy 4:6 “For I am already being poured out as a drink-offering, and the time of my departure has come.”

Our verse today leads into those famous words of Paul where he says that he has fought the fight, kept the faith and finished the course. Those noble words are used to remind us to stay true until the very end. But it’s our verse today that I want to focus upon, especially, “the time of my departure has come.”

We understand departure times. That’s a common expression when on flies. Planes arrive and planes depart. Based upon the departure time, determines what time you have to get to the airport. The word for departure is the same word for “exit.” Paul was about to exit this place. He had another place to be and it wasn’t here.

Just a few thoughts:

First, Paul was realistic about his situation. He understood that he was about to be executed. He was going to die. He was soon to exit. He had a departure time. Too many do not realize what time it is for them. They have unrealistic optimism that everything is going to turn around and get better. Full of disease and out of options, some families just do not accept the fact that there looms a departure time. Paul knew it was soon. He was telling Timothy.

Second, we all have a departure time as well. Most of us do not know when it will be. Hebrews tells us that it is appointed unto man to die once and then the judgment. That divine appointment is the same as the time of our departure. We ought to make the most of each day, living with the understanding that we are moving closer to that divine date appointed for us. Now, we can live in fear or dread, or by faith realize that what awaits us is that heavenly home with the Lord. Work for the night is coming, is yet another expression that describes this divine appointment.

Third, our work here is completed when the departure time comes. There is no over time. There is no extra hours beyond the departure time. Some things are left undone because our departure time came. There has been unfinished books because the author died. Unfinished symphonies because the composer died. There is no coming back and finishing those things.

Fourth, even though we depart, we leave behind impressions, footprints, legacies, and examples. Paul is gone, but here we are today talking about his words. God has preserved these for us. In many ways we all leave behind memories and examples for others to follow.

I write these words this morning with such an impression deep upon my heart. I watched a good man depart yesterday. He was more than a friend. He was a kind, wise and benevolent believer who served the Lord with all that he was. He served God’s people as a shepherd until health would not allow that. He taught the Bible. He was a friend to all. A former teacher and principal, he had the hearts of others always before him. With his loving family gathered around him, knowing that the angels were present, he took his final breath and peacefully crossed beyond the doorway of death into the next room God has awaiting for us. The time of his departure came.

Death in the movies is so fake and dramatic. No final farewell speeches. No music playing. No sunshine bursting through the clouds. Just quietly, peacefully and gently, it ends. And, for believers we know that it doesn’t end. It doesn’t end by looking at a dead body. It doesn’t end with a funeral. It won’t end with a trip to the cemetery. In fact, there is no ending. It never ends. There is simply a shifting of rooms. A change of locations. There is a comfort in knowing that the believer is in the hands of God. There is a peace in knowing that the departed is feeling the best he has felt in years. Safely home. A life well lived.

The time of my departure, what interesting words. Some want to quit before it’s time. Some want to lay down and do no more before they should. Some have never done much their entire life. Not my friend. He devoted his life, his career and his heart to helping others. A friend to preachers, especially young preachers. A sharer of his blessings. A confident guide to those who walk with the Lord. He walked through life with a smile on his face. Medically, his heart was troubled, but spiritually, his heart was golden. Easy to talk to. Patient. Helpful. I sat through countless meetings and enjoyed listening to his insights and history. I expect had the Lord allowed him another decade here, he would have found ways to serve, help and encourage. That was simply within his spiritual DNA. But it was time. He had a departure time. To think that he was at services on Sunday, frail and weak, and on Thursday the angels were carrying his sweet soul to his appointed rest. He was more than a reader of our Jump Starts, he was a great supporter of them. One of the reasons we have continued on and one of the reason we have put so many themes to booklet form is because of the love and direction of this good man. He lived life well. His steps, his words, his thoughts were all chosen with the Lord in mind. Perfect he wasn’t. But saved by grace and enjoying his walk with the Lord, this man showed us the good side of life and of being a Christian. We tend to complain and see problems all too much. My friend had a special way of seeing the Lord. And, to think, now he’s with the Lord, never to leave again. Safely home, where he belongs and where he longed to be.

The time of my departure has come. I shall miss him and I shall never forget him. I only hope that when my departure date comes I will have left a trail of goodness behind me as he has. Every once in a while, not very often, your life intersects with a truly special believer. Their kind is rare. They are not loud. They are not about themselves. But gently and quietly they touch lives and make them better. They leave a path toward God. They have a special way of making you just want to be good. They have Christ dwelling within them. What an example. What a life lived with excellence. What faith. What hope. What joy. What love.

Thanks, Dave. You helped me be a better person. And, thank you Lord, for putting living examples before our eyes.

Roger

Jump Start # 2044

2 Timothy 4:6 “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come.”

The time is here. Paul was about to exit this world. Locked in a Roman prison, having stood before Caesar once, he knew this time would be it. He would be executed. There was no escaping. There was no getting out of this. His departure time had come. His life was almost over. His work was now finished.

We understand that expression when flying. We look at the monitors at the airport and we make sure we are at the right gate at the right time. The time of departure is important when flying. It’s one thing to miss a flight, but there was no missing this coming appointment with death for Paul.

There are two perspectives that we need to look at with this expression, the time of my departure has come.

First, the perspective of the church. Paul had been everywhere. Paul was completely engaged in the work of the kingdom. How would those Christians survive in a world without Paul? He was answering questions from the Corinthians. He’d told two sisters in Philippi to get along. He’d written Philemon and encouraged him to take back the run-away slave. He was building a backbone for Timothy so he would not be so timid. Paul’s fingers are on nearly every page of the N.T. and engaged in nearly every church we read about. He is warning. He is encouraging. He is solving problems. He is pleading with others to do better. He is teaching. He is preaching. He seems to be everywhere.

But one day, brethren would wake up and there would be no Paul on earth. He had departed. I expect for a while there was an emptiness felt and a wondering what will we do. Can’t write Paul about this, he’s not here. Can’t seek Paul’s advice on this, he’s no longer among us. Life without Paul.

Second, from Heaven’s perspective, there was no one like Paul. We trace his steps in Acts. We call it, “Paul’s missionary journeys.” City after city. Church after church. We don’t refer to Andrew’s missionary journeys. We don’t talk about the work of Thomas. Outside of Peter, and a little from John, most of the work of the other apostles is left to speculation, legends and vague historical accounts outside of the Bible. Paul was leaving. Paul was departing. When the apostle James was killed by Herod, there didn’t seem to be much of a loss in momentum, growth or spread of the Gospel. Things moved on without him. The kingdom didn’t seem to skip a beat. The other apostles died, one by one. We are not told when or how. But with Paul, there are pages and pages about the good he did for the kingdom. Who would take his place? Who would fill his shoes? Who would care like he cared? Who would sacrifice himself like he did? Life without Paul.

There are some lessons for us in this.

First, there was a transition taking place late in the N.T. that shifted from the voice of the apostles to the written word. It was the inspired word that would fill the place of the apostles. It was that word that disciples would refer to when they had questions. It was that word that would encourage them and warn them. The word would then go farther and farther than the apostles ever did. The word would do more good than the apostles ever did personally. The death of Paul and the other apostles was not crippling to the church. It was part of God’s plan. The maturing church would not need physical apostles to survive. The word of God would supply all that they needed.

Second, the church is larger and stronger than any one of us. None of us today are close to what Paul was. We are not inspired. We cannot do miracles. We are not chosen apostles. The church survived without apostles and it can survive without us. The kingdom is bigger than we are. The death or moving away of an elder or a preacher can take the wind out of us, but it doesn’t defeat us. Others can rise up and do rise up. Preachers have come and gone and congregations have survived.

This reminds us of our place and role in the kingdom. We are servants and tools of God for the moment. We do all that we can for this generation. We use what is available to us to teach, encourage and build the kingdom. Those before us did the same things in their generation. Preachers rode on trains and outlined lessons on chalk boards. They used mimeographs and carbon paper to make copies of outlines. Before that, preachers rode in buggies and on horse back. They carried lessons in saddlebags and preached in barns, and in homes, and in courthouses. Today, we are using the internet, live streaming across the world and making material in bright colors. The technology and methods have changed, but we are doing the same work. Aside from a few well known names, most today do not know the names of those hard, tireless workers of just a hundred years ago. They did their work and the time of their departure came. The same will be for us. We do all that we can, working as hard as we can, realizing that most in the next generation will not remember us, but it’s Heaven that will never forget.

Third, the good that is done is known to eternity. Most of the names that Paul helped, taught and encouraged are not known to us. There are a few names here and there in the N.T., but the majority of those early disciples are not known to us. God knows them. Their faith and love for the Lord is known to Heaven. Those that walked faithfully with the Lord will be numbered among the saved in Heaven. But the same is true of us. Outside of the community and the church where we worship, most even today, do not know the lives that are touched and made better because of the work of the Gospel. God knows. Heaven is being filled with devoted saints that were taught, encouraged and helped by God’s tireless workers.

Someday, the time of our departure will come. What good did we do? A person here. A person there. It may look like we didn’t do much, but we did. Our names will not be known such as Billy Graham. We will not fill stadiums like he did. We may wonder, what good am I doing. The good you are doing is changing the eternity for someone. You are shinning light into a dark world. You are raising a family to know Jesus. You are making a difference. You are passing on the pure word of God.

Life without Paul. Here we are today, and we are doing fine. Someday, it will be life without us. The kingdom will do fine. Others will step up and do what they can. The work will continue until God pulls the plug on this world and Jesus comes. Servant after servant. Soldier after soldier. We are all in this grand work of telling the world about Jesus.

I expect that first Sunday, as news spread of Paul’s death, there was some sadness and tears. But sermons were preached. The word was taught. The work carried on. The torch was passed into other hands. And, now that same torch has reached our hands. We carry it with honor. We carry it, knowing who carried it before us. We carry it carefully, understanding that someday we too must hand this same torch over to others.

Life without Paul…an interesting thought.

Roger