2 Timothy | 4:1-2

Peter's performance did not affect one bit Jesus wanting to give him the baton Because the baton was not about Peter's brilliance. It was not about Peter's conviction. It was not about Peter's motivation. It was not about Peter's performance. It was not about his success. See, this is what I love. This word parakaleo, this is also a word that's so closely tied to God's spirit. And if we rewind to what happened last week or two weeks ago when we were studying the passage before this and Jesus was Paul was talking about the word of God. [00:33:26] (40 seconds)  #BatonNotBrilliance

And if you've got nothing else, you've got God. The biggest, greatest, scariest mama bear ever. So with boldness and confidence, go forward into the areas and spaces God has called you into because he is with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. And even if it doesn't go well according to human standards, God's got you. He's the one doing the work. That is our God. [00:38:20] (31 seconds)  #GodHasYouCovered

So carry this even though you don't feel worthy. And I think every single one of us this morning needs to hear this. You are not too broken to carry the baton. You are not too far from Jesus to carry the punt baton. You've not sinned too much to not carry the baton. You're not too old. You're not too young. It's not that you don't know enough. If you are a follower of Jesus, you have been given the gift to carry his message, his ministry to the world. [00:37:48] (31 seconds)  #YouCanCarryTheBaton

God has your back even if they hurt you, even if you lose some status, even if you lose some means to provide, even if you're injured, even if you're killed, God is the judge not only of the living, but also of the dead. And I guarantee he has your back. I charge you in the presence of God and the Christ Jesus who's the judge of the living and the dead. And he's Paul's like, I'm not done. And by his appearing, not just that God came in the flesh in the person of Jesus and appeared, but also that he's gonna return. [00:13:36] (34 seconds)  #GodHasYourBackAlways

Like, it is guaranteed that he's gonna return elsewhere. Paul writes, he says, look, God already did the hard work of dying for our sins. Of course, he's gonna come back and get us. He talks about us having the down payment of our future inheritance, his spirit. Like, says, you've got his spirit inside of you. That's the down payment. Of course, he's gonna finish the payment. Like, it it wouldn't make sense for God to do all of this hard work, the heavy lifting, and then leave the easy stuff. [00:14:10] (28 seconds)  #SpiritIsOurDownPayment

God's gonna come back. Jesus is gonna return. He will appear. And I guarantee on that day, you'll wish that you had taken up the baton. You had taken up the charge, that you had accepted the call and ran the race. I charge you in the presence of God and in Christ Jesus who's the judge of the living and the dead and by his appearing and also by his kingdom. Jesus' kingdom is expanding. It is taking over this world and not even the gates of hell are gonna prevail against it. This is what Paul is saying. [00:14:38] (34 seconds)  #RunWithTheBaton

There are people who are vulnerable, people who are hurting, people who need to be protected, people who need someone to stand up for them and be their voice because they don't have a voice. They need you, Timothy. Get in there and preach the word. And then he says, be ready in season and out of season. Now to me, I think about, Psalm one, I think about John 15. In Psalm one, it says, blessed is the person who delights in the law of God. And in his law, he meditates day and night. [00:15:53] (42 seconds)  #StandUpForTheVulnerable

I felt like I could get up and go walk through a wall. You know, I was so excited because this person that I valued, that I, held in high esteem spoke life into me. And this is what Paul is doing to Timothy. He's saying, Timothy, look, I am tell you may not feel like it. You might not feel like you're worthy to carry this. You may not feel like you should be carrying this, that you belong on the track with all these other runners, but I am telling you authoritatively, you belong. [00:11:52] (28 seconds)  #YouBelongInTheRace