Bay Area Community Church

We will explore the evidence that points to a literal, historical and physical resurrection of Jesus. This is the heart of our faith. If Jesus rose from the dead, then He is God and His words are true. So, what’s the evidence? The evidence begins with exploring the reliability of the Bible. True, the Bible records the resurrection of Christ as a historical account. But is the Bible a historically reliable book? How do we know? In this message we examine the evidence for the reliability of the Bible and its trustworthy record of the resurrection.

We all have a ministry. That’s not a concept reserved for people who work at or start churches. If you profess Jesus as Lord, and have been saved by His grace, then you have a ministry to fulfill. That is the Apostle Paul’s concern as he is preparing to meet Jesus and set sail home to heaven – completing the work. This requires a grueling fight of faith, a costly outpouring of your time and energy. Like Paul you will be poured out, and like Paul, you can be strengthened by grace and motivated by love.

The old saying goes "when the going gets tough, the tough get going." The problem with that slogan for Timothy was that he was not tough, and naturally tended to avoid conflict. Knowing this, Paul weighs in with timeless wisdom for Timothy and for all those who are taking Jesus seriously in their lives. In this message we’ll explore the best go-to in life, when life itself is difficult and we are tempted to loosen our grip on living for Jesus.

Another football season has come and gone, and in the NFL, this was the year of the underdog. The Super Bowl was actually a great game this year and reminded me of what makes a healthy offense - a balanced attack. A good offense is going to have a great grind-it-out running game that sets up an effective passing game. Healthy disciple-making churches also have a balanced attack. If Sunday mornings are the big play passes, then personal discipleship – entrusting the gospel to others who go and do the same – is the running game.

Most of us don’t realize the gift we have in the Bible. In my opinion, it ranks as the third-greatest gift of all time. The greatest gift of all is the Lord Jesus. For God so loved the world that He gave. The second-greatest gift of all time is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God lives inside every believer and imparts His power, wisdom, peace and guidance. The third-greatest gift of all is the Bible. Many metaphors attempt to capture the significance of the Bible. It’s been called God’s road map or GPS, His instruction manual for life and His love letter to us. In a sentence, the Bible is God’s inspired revelation of Himself to us. What a gift that is! If that is true, how could we possibly allow it to gather dust on a bookshelf?

For the next year Alexander Ovechkin will hold the title of owning the NHL’s hardest shot as he broke the 100-mph barrier last week in the All Star hardest shot competition. I can put on a number 8 Jersey and buy the same stick, but I can’t shoot with that power. We could all dress up like were in the NHL but not be the real deal. That’s also the case in the church. We can put on church clothes, and talk church talk, and go to church but still not have the power of God at work in us. This was happening in Timothy’s church and he was being charged to fight for truth, but not like a fighter. As we take the torch, we also need to live as gentile guardians against the creep of fake people and false doctrines.

As followers of Jesus, we all desire to be used by God. Over the last several weeks we’ve been encouraged to “fan the flame,” “not be ashamed” and “pass it on.” Great! Yet if we’re honest, most of us would say that we are not being used by the Lord to the extent that we would want. Why is that? What is the key to “being useful to the Master, prepared for every good work (2:21)”?

We’ve all been so determined about something that we’ve said, “Regardless of what may come, I’m going to do it no matter what!” When you say you are going to do something no matter what, you are emphasizing that you’re definitely going to do it, even if there are obstacles or difficulties. That is Paul’s word to Timothy in chapter 2. No matter the hardships or circumstances, I want you to do this no matter what may come. What is Paul challenging Timothy and us to do? It’s the most important ministry, outside of prayer, that we could do for someone else.

If you take Jesus seriously enough to take the torch of the Gospel into the world, you will face some kind of opposition. When that happens you may be tempted to water down the Gospel or distance yourself from Jesus or His people. We do this to avoid feeling shame - the disapproval of others. Timothy would certainly face the possibility of shame and other suffering for standing firm with the death row prisoner Paul, and the message that people are saved by a man who was executed on a cross. In some of his last words recorded, Paul gives Timothy and us a clear reason why we should never feel ashamed of Jesus.

We kick off the new year with a new book of the Bible – 2 Timothy. Written not long before the Apostle Paul would be executed, this letter is a personal encouragement to young Timothy to courageously carry the Gospel to the next generation. As we seek to carry this same torch into our dark world, there is much to be learned and applied from Paul’s timeless words. This week we will hear Paul’s encouragement to fan the flame of the gift of God to Timothy, and consider how we could do the same.