“Grateful to Belong”

(2 Timothy 1:1-14)

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,

To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.  Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy.  I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now I am sure, lives in you.  For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands, for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.

Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, in the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace, and this grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.  For this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher, and for this reason I suffer as I do.  But I am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I have put my trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard the deposit I have entrusted to him.  Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  Guard the good deposit entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.

            World Communion Sunday is an important day in the life of this church and for all Christians across the face of the earth.  It is a day on which we ought to be standing in solidarity with one another as followers of Christ and as people of the Gospel.  Even in the face of our differences—and there ARE differences—we Christians ought to be able to find common ground in these times.  In the midst of denominational, ethnic, racial and doctrinal disparities, we all still need to strive to be disciples and to feel closer to God because we know Jesus. 

            In the context of World Communion Sunday, let’s talk about this morning’s text.  The Apostle Paul’s 2^nd letter to Timothy is a good example of a New Testament epistle.  Its form and content are standard for the way that Paul wrote his letters.

            You know, I find this every time I decide to use one of the Epistles as the basis for my sermon.  It always SOUNDS like a good idea, but it’s harder to create a sermon out of it than one might think—or at least an interesting, engaging and meaningful sermon.  I think it’s because the letters are pretty much left-brained, rational, and mostly self-explanatory.  They are not poetic in style or content.  So milking them for richness and depth can be a tough job. 

But here we are with these opening verses in 2^nd Timothy, trusting there is something out of which we can make meaning.

            There IS a warm feeling to this letter, unlike some of the epistles.  Paul is speaking to a young man whom he knows and loves.  Imagine how Timothy feels when Paul says, “I am grateful to God when I remember you.”  And his recognition of Timothy as one who has been given the spirit of power, love and self-discipline are words out of the mouth of a true mentor. 

            As folks who are at various stages of our own spiritual development, and as we work to follow Jesus, what Paul has to say to Timothy may also be an encouragement to us as we struggle with the tensions of discipleship in our own complicated world.  These are times in which being part of a church is not a slam dunk for many people, when we are not always sure that we want to be part of the Club as it plays itself out in the world, as groups like Christian Nationalists are actively trying to steal away the church of Jesus, the church that he envisioned to be a community.

            So, let’s hear Paul’s words to Timothy as though he were addressing a church or the Church.  Paul, of course, had his own issues, but once he was on board, he never lost sight of his vision for Church.  In this letter, he didn’t get hung up on the details of what the individual does, but, rather, it’s as though he says to all of us, “I am grateful to God for who you are as individuals and as a church.  You are important not only because of what you do but because of who you are—who God has made you to be.  I am grateful for you because of the spirit God has placed in you at your birth.  And so, we need to rekindle that Spirit, that gift of God, always.”  And our job is to be quiet, to listen for God’s guidance in all things.

            We learn how to live in the Jesus House by listening to God’s purpose and to what God has in store for us.  And we belong because we need the community that has been created.  We belong because we want to create a container in which we all can exist that is strong enough to hold each of us, regardless of our differences, even our disagreements. 

            It is our mission to carry Jesus’ message of love into the world as a united front.  That does not mean that we pull our punches and stay quiet when there are those among us whose message is anything but about love.  It does mean that God’s love extends to all, and all means all.  And to this, we must sign on to believe, that we are grateful to belong, that we will stand in unity with the church of Jesus Christ, so long as we love God and love each other. 

            Today people across the world are eating and drinking the feast of our Lord together (sort of like, we’re eating together at different places and times in the Jesus House.).  We need to keep coming back so that we can support each other in this mission of love—in our prayer lives, in the way we live, in the way we teach our children, and in the way we conduct our lives when we are out there living those lives in the world.            So, today, as Paul might have said to Timothy, “I’m reminding you—as I remind myself—to rekindle the gift of God that is within you.”  When we are authentic, when our goal is not to one-up those with whom we disagree, we will be closer to God.  Our gifts will shine through, and, blessedly, we will begin to know God’s will in our lives.  We will be the light of Jesus shining through, especially on this day.