Well, if you have a Bible, please open it up to the book of 2 Timothy, chapter 3. If you don't have a Bible, there are Bibles in the back. There are also the notes printed on your handout, the text for today. And you know, as I got to spend time with the kids this week at Camp Compass, one thing that I love to do is I like to walk around as they're traveling from the games to the crafts to the snacks, and I like to ask them questions about their favorite character. And I had asked, “Hey, what's your favorite snack?” And I had this one little kindergarten girl say, "This was the best hippopotamus I've ever eaten.” I was like, "Oh wow, we should talk more. What other hippopotamuses have you eaten? What are your parents feeding you?” Right? And it was so much fun being with the kids and getting into the Word with them and talking with them and taking what we know about God and his Word and passing it on to them. And the question that we want to ask as we come here on this family weekend, as many of us are thinking about our kids and Camp Compass, or maybe you don't have kids, or maybe your kids have grown. But the question that we want to ask here today is: What are we passing on to other people? What are the things that we are taking that we know and that we're passing on, maybe to the next generation, or maybe to our coworkers or our neighbors? What are the things that we are passing on? And here in 2 Timothy, we find a great example of two women who passed on their faith. And if you are open to 2 Timothy, chapter 3, I would invite you to stand for the public reading of Scripture as we give this text our full and undivided devotion. Here is what it says in 2 Timothy 3:14-17. It says,

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom[a] you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God[b] may be complete, equipped for every good work.

You guys can go ahead and have a seat. And this is a letter that Paul, the apostle, wrote to Timothy. And this is the last letter that we have from Paul, kind of nearing the end of his life here. And Paul is writing to Timothy, and he calls him as he writes this letter, his beloved child. And Paul was very close to Timothy. You see that throughout the Scripture. You can find many times where Paul talks about Timothy, or he's going somewhere with Timothy, or he's writing a letter to this church, and Timothy's name is mentioned. And here, what Paul talks about is, hey Timothy, you need to stand firm in your faith. Hey Timothy, people are going to come in. People are going to have a different gospel. People are going to have an appearance of godliness, but they deny it by the way that they live their life. Well, you, Timothy, you need to stand firm. You need to contend for the faith. And this is what he says in 2 Timothy, chapter 3. Look at verse 1 here. He says, "But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.”

Hey, Timothy, you don't need to be surprised when the world goes from bad to worse. I'm telling you, it's happening. I'm telling you, this is what is going to happen, that people are going to become lovers of self, lovers of money. They're going to have this appearance of godliness. They're going to be pro God. They're going to fill churches. They're going to say, "Yes, I love God, but I deny him by the way that I live my life.” See, there's no power in the way that I live. There's no power over sin in my walk with Christ because I don't really know God. That's what he's getting at here in verse 5. They have this appearance of godliness, they're pro-God. They say maybe even good things about God, but they deny his power because they're not conducting themselves in a way that is holy, a way that is pure. He's saying, hey, don't be surprised when this happens. This is what's coming. But you, Timothy, you will need to contend for the faith; you need to keep pressing on. You need to live in such a way where you are focused on the teaching that you have heard from the beginning. You need to keep standing firm in that teaching.

Look at what he says. Back up at our text. It's starting in verse 13. He says, “While evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived, but as for you, continue in what you have learned.” This word here, “continue,” this is one of our favorite Greek words here at the church. It's this word, meno. It means “to remain” or “to stay.” He's saying, hey Timothy, what you need to do is you need to stay in what you have learned. What are the things that you have learned about God? What are the things that you've been taught? What are the things that have been passed down to you? Okay, you need to stay right there in what you have learned. This is the word that Jesus uses in John, chapter 15, when Jesus says that you need to meno, “you need to stay in me, and I in you, for a branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it stays in the vine.” Hey, you have to be connected. You have to stay. You have to stay right there. You need to abide in me, Jesus says.

Jesus goes on to say that apart from me, you can't do anything. And then he says, hey, you need to stay in my Word. And if my words stay in you, well, then ask me whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. That's the Christian life. I'm going to stay connected. I'm going to stay. I'm going to sit right there in Jesus. And here, Paul, he's encouraging Timothy, well, you need to continue. You need to meno in the things that you have learned and firmly believed. This idea of “firmly believed,” it's this idea of he has confidence. He's become convinced. He has become firmly convinced in the things that he's been taught. You see, it's not just that Timothy learned things about God, it's not just that he was taught things about God, it's that Timothy became convinced that the things in this book, the things in the sacred writings, the things that were passed down to him, he was convinced that those things were true. It wasn't just like somebody was telling him that they were true. It wasn't that somebody was trying to convince him that they were. Timothy was fully convinced. He was fully convinced that everything that this book says is true. I mean, jump down to verse 16 of our passage in chapter 3, he was convinced that “all Scripture is breathed out by God.” Timothy was convinced that the Scripture was “profitable for teaching.” He was convinced that it was “profitable for reproof and for correction and for training i righteousness.” Timothy was convinced that the Word of God was able to make him complete and “equipped for every good work” that Jesus had before him. Timothy was convinced of these things. And how did Timothy acquire this sort of faith? Where did he learn the sacred writings? Where did he learn these things? Well, if you flip over to chapter 1, look at what it says in verse 5. Paul says, "I am reminded of your sincere faith.” All right, Timothy, you have a sincere faith. I know it. I can see that your faith is true. It's sincere, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and now I am sure dwells within you.

So, Timothy had a grandmother and a mother, and the way that Paul describes these two women, they were known for their faith. If Paul thought of these two people, the thing that he walked away with thinking about was that these two women they are full of faith, that their faith in Christ is sincere. And we know from passages like Acts 16 that the reason why Timothy's father is not mentioned here is because his father he did not believe in YHWH. He was a Greek. His mother was a Jew, and so his mother, well, she believed in the Law. She believed in the Prophets. She believed in the Writing. She had the faith that there would be one who would come. She believed the prophets when they prophesied about the “suffering servant.” She had faith that the Messiah would come and that he would not see corruption, as it talks about in the Writings. You see, these two women they had a faith in what God's Word said was true, and they passed that faith on to their son Timothy. And so, Timothy had these two great examples of a grandmother and a mother.

And as we're here today, I mean, I just want to say because I know there are a lot of people here in the room where this is how your household would be described, that one of you, maybe in your house, you will have a sincere faith in Jesus, but your spouse doesn't, or maybe some of you grandparents that you have a sincere faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, but your kids and now your grandkids, well, they don't have that sincere faith as you do. And the number of kids that came to Camp Compass this week that were brought here by their grandparents, I mean it was awesome as I got to meet people and talk to them, and hey, these are my grandkids. I'm bringing them to Camp Compass. They live in Ontario. Right? And here they are. They're coming to this camp to hear the Word of God preached. There was a grandfather here at the church whose grandkids were here at the church, but then he brought the neighbors' grandkids to the church. Kids that weren't even his grandkids. He's like inviting his neighbors. You guys should come check out this camp. You should come. You see, if you are a grandparent who is full of faith, well, be encouraged by Timothy here and his example because you have the ability now to go and pray for your grandkids and to share the good news with your grandkids. I mean, this example that Timothy has here is so important for these kids. And if you go back to our passage in 1 Timothy, chapter 3, I mean, look at what they taught him. Look at the things that they were passing down to Timothy. It says in verse 14 that he needs to “continue in the things that he is convinced of, knowing from whom he has learned it.” Right? That he learned it from his family, or at least part of his family. And it says in verse 15, and “how from childhood you were acquainted with the sacred writings,” and these sacred writings they're able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

The sacred writings didn't have the New Testament. They didn't have the letters of Paul. They had the Law, they had the Prophets, the books that we know as the Old Testament, and those books are able to make you wise through faith in Christ Jesus. Those books are showing you who Jesus is, and it says here this word for childhood, right? Verse 15, how “from childhood you were acquainted.” Well, this idea for childhood is not like well when you're six or seven, kind of like maybe even a toddler or beyond, or hey, you're now entering the junior high stage, so now we can really teach you because you you're developed more, and we can really talk to you. This word for childhood is this word for infancy. Like, ever since Timothy was this little baby, he was acquainted with the sacred writings.

Now, I don't know what you think of when you picture that. I don't know if you think of your baby lying there and then like the Word is opened and you're like preaching a sermon to your child, right? Come on, listen to me. Let's pray, right? Well, this word for “acquainted,” it's the idea of I'm able to perceive it with all of my senses. Like, as I'm growing up, I can see their faith. I can hear the way they talk about it. Like, my house, it ruminates. It's all over the place in my home, I can sense it. It wasn't just like a hey, listen to what I say. It's we're talking about it. You can see my faith. And that's the kind of home that Timothy grew up in. Before he ever even meets Paul, who goes on to disciple him, who takes him and continues on the discipleship journey. Timothy, he was brought up by his mom and his grandma, and they brought him the sacred writings. And they didn't just teach him, but it filled their home in such a way where he was able to perceive it by the way that he saw the things that he heard.

And the thing that you need to see here, and the thing that you need to believe, is that these sacred writings, they're able to make you wise for salvation. That is the reason why we want to open the Word with the kids. That's the reason why you should be passionate about opening the Word with your neighbors or your coworkers, or even opening the Word yourself, because this Word right here is able to do something that no other book can. It's able to make you wise for salvation. It's able to grant you new life in Christ. It's showing you who Jesus is. It's exposing who we are in our sin and the solution to our problem right here. And this Word, after we believe in Jesus, after we are saved, well now it's able to make us equipped for every good work. It's able to train us. It's able to teach us and reprove us. It's able to correct us. You see, this book isn't something that I just need before I'm a Christian. This book is something I need every single day of my life, because it's going to teach me and correct me.

See, when I'm having a conversation with somebody, this is the Word that I want to be bringing to that conversation, because these words have life. They're able to make you wise. They're able to make you grow up in your salvation, they're able to make you complete and perfect in Christ. These are the words that we want to bring to other people. Now, go with me to the book of Matthew, Matthew, chapter 28, because you see in Timothy's home this great example of these two people that were passing on the Word to Timothy in such a way where Timothy believed he knew it was true. He was convinced of it, and it was his own faith that he had. It wasn't just that his parents believed or his mom believed, and she was passing it down. No, he became fully convinced that this was true. Timothy grew up in a home that was full of discipleship. They were teaching him. They were training him, and Timothy, he is the recipient of this good teaching. And here in Matthew 28, well, this is the command from Jesus. This is a command to Jesus to all of his disciples, everyone that would follow after him. It says in Matthew, chapter 28, verse 18, and Jesus said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age.” Jesus before he rises into heaven, before he ascends, after he rose from the dead, he sees his disciples and he says, hey guys, all authority has been given to me. Right? We like to say in the kids’ ministry, Jesus is the boss. Right? Jesus is the one in charge. He's the one who made you. He's the one who sets the rules. He's the one who has all authority in heaven and on earth. And the thing that Jesus says is, he says, "Go and make disciples.” That's the call for a Christian, to make disciples. That's the call for every parent in the room, to make disciples in your home.

See, I've met a lot of kids who grow up in a Christian home. I've met a lot of people here at the church, adults who say, "Yeah, I grew up in a Christian home.” But how many of these kids are growing up in a discipleship home? You see, unfortunately, I think those two things have become different in our minds. When Jesus is acting like, if you are a Christian, you are a disciple who makes disciples. A disciple, it means “learner”. It's somebody who has been taught the way of Jesus, and I'm going to spend the rest of my life continuing to learn who Jesus is, continuing to learn all the things that Jesus has commanded me. A disciple is somebody who learns. And today, in this the world of Christianity, it's like I can say that I'm a Christian, and I go to church on Sunday, but that's kind of the extent of my faith. When a disciple is somebody who learns, and then they take what they have been taught, they take what they have learned, and then they go and they bring it to other people, and they pass it on to other souls, they pass it on to their children in such a way where my children they don't just hear me say it, but they see me live it.

If there was a scale up here on the stage, and you can picture your life, or you can maybe just picture your summer, and on one side of the scale was just all the things that that you that you're passionate about, all the things that you care about, all the things that maybe you do on a day-to-day basis, maybe all the things that you do on a week-to-week basis, and then on the other side of the scale, it was the time that you spent with the Lord. It's time that you spend passing things on to other people. It's time that you spend worshiping God. It's time that you spend over here with the Lord. What side of the scale would tip? You see, are we so caught up in our calendar, are we so caught up in the things of this world that we're not really learning the way of Jesus? And if we're not learning the way of Jesus, how are we going to pass that on to our children? How do our children hear of the sacred writings if we don't tell them? Who are my kids going to hear from if I'm not speaking to them this Word that's able to make them wise?

Put it down like this for point number one: We need to “Follow God's design for parenting: Making disciples” at home. See, we can't separate in our minds that as a parent, God has given me the mandate to make disciples in my children. I don't know what you think about when you think of your kids and your responsibility to your kids. I know a lot of people are like, I want to keep them safe, and I want them to be good people. I want them to have good morals. I want them to grow up and be successful, or have a good job. But is that really what God says? The point of parenting is, yeah, I want my kids to have good morals. I want my kids to grow up and to be successful, but not in the world's eyes. No, I want them to know God. See, what would you say your kids need the most? See, my kids, the concern that I have is that so many parents, where they're thinking like I have to keep my kids safe from the world. I have to protect them from the things that they can see. I have to even protect them from things like being sick and all these things. And hey, I'm with you. I don't want my kids to be seeing things that they shouldn't see. I don't want my kids getting into things that they shouldn't be getting into, but if I'm so concerned about what's out there outside my home, and I just try to get in this bubble where I'm protecting them in my home, you're missing the point because the point is that your kids have a sinful heart, and that heart goes with them everywhere. You could put your kids in a room with nothing in it, and they would still sin, because they have a heart that is degenerate. They have a heart that the Bible describes as sinful and wicked. They have a heart that people can't even understand. That is the heart that our children are walking around with, and we're so convinced that it's out there in the world that's the problem. When I need to see my children as people that walk around with the biggest problem every single day, they need a new heart, and I need to take this Word that's able to make them wise, and I need to pass it on. Are you able to do that?

Do you see that God is the one who makes the family? He is the one that tells you that this is the Word of God is ready to teach you how to be a parent. It's ready to show you all the things your kids need. It's able to help you raising your kid, but it's saying, hey, I'm ready to do it God's way. This is what it says in Psalm chapter 127:27. It says, "Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil, for he gives his beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord; the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them. He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.” See, can you hear as a parent that unless the Lord is the one building my house, all my labor is in vain. See, this gets into what are the things that my family is passionate about. If I'm just trying to create morally good people, I'm missing the point. God is saying, my children need to be saved. They need to have their eyes open. They need a new heart. And unless the Lord is going to build the house, all the things that I'm trying to do in my family to raise them a certain way, it's all in vain, if only a little sprinkle of Jesus is in my house.

You see, my goal as a parent is I need to raise them up like a warrior who's got arrows, and I'm going to launch those arrows into a unsaved world. And my arrows that I launch into the world are going to make an impact for God's kingdom. That is the point of parenting. And I think so much of our parenting has been lost. So much of our thought about raising children, it's not this. You see, we need to think of what is the point of having these kids. Well, you can't separate that. The point is, I’ve got to make these kids disciples of Jesus. I need to teach them. I need to equip them with all the things that Jesus commanded. I need to help my children, and the only thing that's going to help them ultimately is the Word of God. Do you believe this? Are you fully convinced? See, what this has to say is not going to change the way that we conduct ourselves at home if you are not fully convinced. And your children will know if you are fully convinced. They will see it. Our kids can see; they can perceive who we really are, and they know if you are convinced that this word is true. See, if I can understand, if I can really admit, yes, my kids, they need to be made new. They need that new heart. The Bible describes his as becoming a “new creation.” If that's what my children need, what am I doing about that? Am I passing that on? Do I see that as their biggest need?

Go with me to Acts chapter 16. This is where Paul meets Timothy, or at least it seems like this is where Paul meets Timothy for the first time. And Paul here, as he meets Timothy in Acts, chapter 16, he speaks of him as one who is already a disciple. So, you might know Paul, and you might have heard that yeah, Paul did take Timothy, and Paul discipled Timothy. But when Paul meets Timothy, it's like well, Timothy is already a follower of Jesus. He's already a learner of Christ. And then Paul takes that, and then he takes Timothy and keeps running with them with him. And in Acts, chapter 16, verse 1, it says, “Paul, came also to Derbe and to Lystra, and a disciple was there.” This is how it's describing Timothy is that he was a disciple, “the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium.” Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places. So, Paul, when he meets Timothy, the way that he describes him is that he's a disciple, and not only is he a learner of Christ, not only is he following Jesus, but he's well-spoken of by the brothers. When people are like talking about Timothy, it's like yeah, this guy he's the real deal. Timothy, he loves God. Timothy, he's following the example of Christ. And so, when Paul meets this guy, he's like I want this guy to go with me. I want him to accompany me on my journey. So, Paul, what he does is he takes Timothy, and now they travel around and they're sharing that good news, and this is where their relationship begins.

But go back with me to 2 Timothy, chapter 3, where we started, and let's see how this relationship ends, and what Paul has to say to Timothy, his beloved child in the faith, as he takes Timothy now, who's a young disciple, and he's carrying him along, and he's teaching him, they're going from town to town and place to place, and they're preaching the good news, and they're writing letters to churches. And now, Timothy and Paul, at the end of their life, this is what Paul says to Timothy in 2 Timothy, chapter 3, verse 10. He says, "You, however, have followed my teaching,” but you didn't just follow the things that I said, Timothy, no, you followed “my conduct, my aim in life.” Timothy, you followed “my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness. You even followed my persecutions and my sufferings.” See, it wasn't just like Paul taught Timothy, and it's like okay, Timothy's filled with a bunch of knowledge about God. He's filled with good Bible teaching about God. Timothy could tell you the story of how Moses led the people out of the wilderness. No, he's saying you didn't just follow my teaching, Timothy, you followed my conduct. You followed my aim in life. See, Paul's aim in life was Jesus. What is your aim in life? If someone was to follow you, if someone was to follow your way of life, where would that lead them? What kind of example are we setting? Paul is saying, hey Timothy, you followed not only the things that I said, you followed the way that I lived, my aim, my purpose, the thing that I'm shooting for every day, the thing that I rise up early for, the thing that I'm thinking about at lunchtime, at dinner time, wherever I go, my aim in life, who I am. You followed that conduct. You followed my faith and my patience, you saw the way that I loved my steadfastness, all these great qualities that I'm sure that every parent in the room would love to see in their children.

I want my children to be patient. I want them to be full of love for other people. I want them to be standing fast in the Word of God. Okay, Paul's saying, Timothy, you're my beloved child, and you're following my example. See, if you're not a parent in the room, are you like Paul, where you're even seeing other people as your children? Would you be able to say that you have spiritual children, or that you've made disciples here at the church, or in your workplace, or in your neighborhood? Is there a line of people that are following your aim in life? And now, hey, if you are new to Christianity, if you're new to even here at the church, and we have people that are coming to the church here this weekend that are possibly here for the first time because of Camp Compass, if you're just learning the ways of Jesus, if you're just like I don't even know what a disciple is, well, we're thankful that you're here, and we just want to say that there's no greater master. There's no way to spend your life than to give it to Jesus Christ. He's the one who will lead you. He will love you. He will be with you. He will hold you fast until the day that you meet him. There's no better way to live life than for your aim to be following Jesus. But for those of us who are following Jesus, who are saying, I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ, well, then what is your aim in life?

Go with me to Philippians, chapter 3, just a couple pages over to the left here. Philippians, chapter 3. This is when Paul writes this letter, he says, “Paul and Timothy,” so, here's Paul, writing with Timothy to the servants who are at Philippi, and Paul he's talking about this example that he has set, and he wants the people in Philippi to follow his example, and he says in verse 17 of Philippians, chapter 3, “Brothers, join in imitating me.” Hey, copy my life, and “keep your eyes on those who live according to the example you have in us.” Why? Well, “For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.” See who is a disciple that you have made to where you even see this person, or you see the way that they live, their aim in life. It's like these people are my joy and my crown. Can you describe anybody in your life like that?

The apostle Paul loves these people so much, he's calling them his brothers. That's not just a cute word we use in Christianity. It's like these people are my family. I love these people. You are my crown. When I think of the good things that I've done in my life, I think of people. That's discipleship. That's the call for every Christian here in the room: is that we would have people that are imitating. I mean, look at what he says in verse 17. He says, "Join in imitating me.” Copy my life. If people copied your life, where would that lead them? If your kids imitated you, would you find them having full faith? If your kids copied your life, would you find them being steadfast in the midst of a trial. If your kids did what you did, would you find them constantly being anxious, or would you find them rising early in the morning and pouring their hearts out to God? Would you find your children fully convinced that this Word is true? Would you find your kids speaking to strangers about the good news of the gospel because they're following your example? See, what kind of life are we living? Are we living a life where Paul can say, "Follow me"? This isn't Paul being cocky. It's not Paul being like I'm the best person. No, he's saying follow me because when you follow me, you're following Jesus. Because my aim in life is Christ. If somebody followed you, where would that lead them? Look at what he says to Timothy in verse 19 of chapter 2. He says, "I hope to in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by good news of you.” Hey, I miss you guys. I want to hear about you guys, so I'm going to send Timothy to you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare, for they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth and how, as a son with a father, he has served with me in the gospel.” Paul, when he saw Timothy, he's like, "This is my son. I'm like a father to this guy. That's discipleship.

If you're new as a Christian, if you're a brand new disciple, well, then you are the son. You need to find someone who is going to help you and teach you the ways of Jesus, and as you're learning and growing in your relationship with Christ, well, now you're going to find someone and you're going to pass it on to them. And so, at any stage of our life, whether we've been Christians for decades, well, we're still learners. We still need someone discipling us, and then we need to keep passing that on. That's how it spreads. That's how it works. That's how God designed it, and that's what he expects from his people.

You need to put it down like this for point number two: “Consider the product of your example.” Consider the product of your example. If your kids grew up and were exactly like you, would that be something that honors God? When your kids face temptation, are they able to follow in your example? Have you taught them how to resist temptation? Have you taught them how to call out to the Lord? Have you taught them how to confess your sins? Do they see that in the way that you conduct yourself? That's the call for every parent. That's the call for every Christian, every disciple-maker.

Go with me to 1 Corinthians, chapter 4. 1 Corinthians, chapter 4. And you see this all over the Scripture with this idea that you need to follow my conduct or my way of life. This idea of being an example is not just something for the deacons at the church or the servants at the church or those passionate Christians or the missionaries. Know that the call to be an example is for every Christian because as I follow Christ, well I look more and more like him, and now even where I'm discipling other people and I'm passing it on, it's like I'm making more disciples. Well, the idea is that I can even take one of the disciples that I have made, and I can send them somewhere else, and I can be like, hey, follow their example now. That's the kind of relationship that Paul and Timothy had. Look at what it says in 1 Corinthians, chapter 4, verse 14. These people haven't met Timothy yet in Corinth, and it says, "I do not write these things to make you ashamed.” Right? There are a lot of things that Paul is writing to them that this is hard to hear, right? But to admonish you as beloved children, okay? “You are my beloved children, and I'm writing some hard things to you. They're going to be hard to hear, but I'm not writing them to put you down. No, I'm writing them to admonish you, for though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers, but I have become your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. I urge you then be imitators of me.” Hey, how am I going to imitate Paul when he's not around? Hey, he's not at the church that I go to. How do I imitate Paul? I can't just call him up and ask him questions whenever I want, or FaceTime him across the world. How do I get a hold of Paul? How do I follow his example? Verse 17. “That is why I sent you, Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ.” Paul discipled Timothy so well that it's like now Timothy is going to go to this place, and he's saying, if you follow Timothy, you're following my example. That's discipleship. That's Christianity. It's that I would take somebody, I'd pass it on, and now I can send them somewhere else, and it's like, yeah, listen to this guy, follow him.

We have this Partners program here at our church. It's this one-on-one discipleship, and I remember I took somebody through Partners, and the idea is that after they go through Partners, well, then they would take someone else through Partners, and so on and so forth. And I met this guy. He came up to me, and he had his Partners book. He said, "Hello, I'm so and so. I'm your Partner's grandchild.” I was like, "My partner's grandchild?” I didn't know those existed, right? You mean to write you in the will? Like, what are we talking about here? He's like, "Well, yeah, the guy that you took through Partners took me through Partners.” I was like, "Oh, well, that means you're the great grandchild of that guy over there, and the great great child of that guy over there.” That's the idea that I could even pass it on in such a way where somebody now takes the Word that they've received and now they are giving it to other people. See, what kind of example are you, and are you fully convinced that this word is true to where your aim in life is to follow this book. Your aim in life is to do all the things that Christ commanded you. You see, if you are a Christian, if you have put your faith in Jesus, well, then you have the written revelation of God. God has put his Holy Spirit within you. You have the good news. Who are you sharing it with? Are you speaking it to your children? How much time do we spend talking about the things of God? It's not just like we're going to read the Bible in the morning. No, in Deuteronomy, chapter six6 when it talks about parents passing it on to their kids, it says first you’ve got to get the word onto your heart, and then you pass it on to them. You diligently teach them. It's the idea of sharpening an arrow, this idea of diligence. I'm just going to keep on doing it. It doesn't just say when you open the Bible and read it. No, it says when you walk by the way, when you lie down for bed, when you rise up early in the morning. All the time, I'm talking about the Word. All the time, I'm passing it on to my kids because they need to hear the truth of God's Word because that's what's able to fix their greatest need. Their greatest problem is not where they're going to go to college. Their greatest problem is not how good of a sports baseball player they are. Their greatest need is that they would know Jesus. Do they hear him from you? Do you know how to pass that on? Are there things that you have learned that now you are equipped and you are sharing those things with your kids? Not just in the morning when it's time to read, but the way I conduct my life, the way that I go through a trial, the way that I respond to that evil comment. Everything about my life, it's my aim and passion to serve Jesus. And so, when my kids are observing my life, they see Christ. That is the point of parenting. That is why God gave you these children, to make them disciples, to go before the Lord humbly and say, God, I cannot do this. I cannot change their hearts. It's this dependency. If you don't feel dependent before the Lord for your children's salvation, if you don't fall on your knees and beg him to save them, well, then you're puffed up, thinking that you can do something that you can't do. Only God can do this, and he wants to use you to share with them the Word. And if you don't do it, who is going to?

Do your kids hear the Word more at church than they do at home? You're with them every day. Did you know for Camp Compass we had multiple times where leaders would pray for your children, people that don't even have kids. They were praying for you. Do you know that every single week, multiple times a week, people at this church are praying for the parents of this church. Are you praying for your kids? Do you see that they need the Lord? or is somehow in my mind it's like, yeah, we grow up in this Christian environment, but there's so little Jesus. How did our homes become that way? How did Christianity become that way, where it's so easy to just put the label of Christianity, but we deny him by its power. We don't live in such a way that it's true. Why do so many kids grow up in church and leave the church? Could it possibly be that they see hypocrisy in their home? Could they see that there's hypocrisy even here amongst us? Are we, as believers, older Christians in the faith? Are we setting an example every time we go out there in the courtyard? Are we setting an example by teaching the next generation, the junior highers and the high schoolers? Do we care about these people as souls? Are we ready to welcome them? Are we ready to disciple them? Because I've learned about Jesus and I want to pass that on. You guys should follow the way that I live my life, because if you follow me, you will love your wife. You will teach your kids. You will pray for your coworkers. You will love God with all of your heart.

You see, the problem isn't the kids. The problem is us. Do we have the sacred writings upon our heart, that it overflows out of me? If you take the entire world, if everyone rejects you, are you still going to follow Jesus? Is your one desire, your one aim in life, is the Lord? If that's true, well, that's going to be seen. It's going to be perceived. It's going to be noticed by all, and your kids. Even if they don't believe it, they know you do. On Thursday night, we had family night here at the church, and we welcomed all the new families to come, all the people that were invited by their friends, and we had one guy at our church stand up, and he gave his testimony of how God saved him. And he then started talking about how when God saved him, it really put upon his heart this burning desire to see his kids know God. And so, he started teaching my children diligently. And at first, oh, it was awkward. Like at first, when I opened the Bible, it was like this was hard. I didn't know what to do. But as I was faithful to continue to do it day after day, year after year, I saw God use his Word to open my children's eyes. And one of his kids, who was in high school or junior high, he said, he came to his dad one day and he said, "Dad, I've been pretending that God isn't real. You see, I know it's real because I see it in the way that you live your life, in the way that you have faith, Dad. I know it's real, but I've been pretending like it's not, and I'm here to confess my sin.” And that kid, he got saved, and God saved his soul because what he knew was true from his dad was so clear to him.

We had a young man get baptized a couple of months ago, and he stood up here in the tank and he said, "The reason why I can stand here before you save today is number one, God saved my soul. Jesus transformed my heart, and the way God used that to happen, the way God made that happen, was my dad. My dad. When my dad was angry, my dad apologized to me. My dad didn't just tell me things; he showed me things. He lived this life, and when I saw my dad, I knew it was real, and I wanted faith like my dad’s.” And this kid, he spoke so eloquently. He spoke in such a powerful way. I'm like, how old is this guy? This guy's in high school. He's talking like he's a mature adult. Just the way that he's able to articulate the gospel. I knew him when he was a little kid, and he was rough. And look at the work that God did in his life, because his parents were diligently teaching him. They were examples to this young man, and now this young man is passing it on to your kids. He's serving over there.

See, we need to be examples to our children. Go with me to 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians, chapter 5. This is now the church in Corinth. Will they now know Paul or Timothy? They met him, and so now in 2 Corinthians, when Paul writes this letter, he says that it's Paul and Timothy, your brother, who's writing this letter to you. And in 2 Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 16, he says, "From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh, even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh. We regard him thus no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself.” And look at what Christ did. He gave us the ministry of reconciliation. He gave it to the pastors and to the deacons. Oh no, that's not in my Bible. No, do you guys see that? No, he gave us this message of reconciliation, verse 19. That is in Christ, “God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” God has given you the message of reconciliation. God has given you the message that takes people who are in the darkness and transforms them into God's marvelous light. Why would we hold that back unless we're not convinced it to be true? See, he's saying that you, in Christ, you are an ambassador. You're someone who's supposed to take this message that you have received and you go pass it on to whoever will listen to you. And if you’ve got kids in your house, they're still in your household, they're under your roof, well, then you need to take this message of reconciliation to them. From the time that they're infants, it fills my home. See, that's the point of being made new. If you have been made new in Christ, well, then now you have the message. You're an ambassador now. You're not just an ambassador once you reach a certain level of Christianity. No, you have the message of reconciliation. You know the gospel. You know how Christ has saved you. Pass it on and watch what God will do. Depend upon him. Pray to him.

Souls are on the line every single day. Some of them are living in your house, their souls are on the line. See, I would imagine that if your child had a terminal illness, if you took them to the doctor and they said, "I'm sorry, they have this much time to live,” I would imagine you would get a second opinion and a third opinion, and you would figure out how do I keep this from happening? My child is going to die. How do I keep this from happening? And then one doctor says, "You know what? There is actually a way. There is a way that your child could still live, but it's going to be hard. Would you be like, "Okay, never mind. It's too hard.” No, what do I have to do? Well, you know, it might require you to move. Would you move? You know, it might require you to give up your Sunday morning. Might require you to give up your evenings. It might require you to be patient and to be diligent. It might require you to have them do a certain type of thing on a daily basis, so you can get them healthy. Might require you to go to these visits. It might require…it doesn't matter what it would require. I bet every single parent in this room would do whatever it took. Why then do we not feel the same sense of urgency when it comes to their spiritual life, their soul that lives forever? Where's the urgency? Do I see my kids as an inconvenience to my sleep time? Do I rise and get angry with them because they are not listening to me? Guess what? They're not going to listen to you because they have an evil heart. It shouldn't surprise us when they disobey. They have sinful hearts, and yet we are so shocked, and we treat them like, how dare you? How could you possibly do that? How could you say that again? I already told you, don't do that. It's like we miss the point.

They don't know God, and we're acting like they should be perfect. Are you perfect? Do we care about their spiritual souls in this way, where it's like, man, God, you need to get a hold of my child. When I see them sin, does that drive me to prayer? See, one way you'll know if you have this sort of dependency upon God is how much time do you find yourself praying on behalf of your children? They're not praying to God. How much time do you spend praying on behalf of your neighbor? They're not praying to God. Are you praying for them on their behalf. Are you pleading with God? God, will you save these people? They don't know you, God. Unless you intervene, they're going to continue to walk in their sin until the day they meet you. God, I want them to know you, and I'll do whatever it takes.

If I know this to be true, if this has changed my life, if what the Scripture says to me is true, well, then that should fill me with a deep desire to tell it to my kids. Go with me to Romans, chapter 9 and look at the desire that Paul has for people that aren't even his children. These people aren't even Paul's kids and look at the way that he speaks of them. Look at the passion behind his heart. Listen to what he says in Romans, chapter 9, verse 1. He says, "I am speaking the truth in Christ. I am not lying.” Okay, I'm not lying to you. I'm speaking the truth. “My conscience even bears me witness in the Holy Spirit." He's about to say something crazy. “I have great sorrow, and unceasing anguish in my heart, for I wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers.” Paul is saying this about people that are not his children. Listen to this. I mean, he's saying, I wish I could switch places with them. That's the kind of love that this man had for people.

What are you willing to do to make disciples? What are you willing to do? Are you willing to be the awkward guy at work? Are you being willing to be the Jesus freak? Are you willing to stay up late and teach your kids? Because, all of a sudden, this is the moment they want to talk when you're exhausted at the end of the day. See, what are you willing to do? Are you willing to be patient and to teach them what Jesus says, to raise them in the discipline and the instruction of the Lord? Where it's like, man, this is hard. This is tough. If you're a parent, you know this is difficult. Are you willing to do that for their soul? Because Paul was ready to switch places with them, and if that's how we are towards our kids, I would imagine we would do all that we could, that we would be so passionate about the Word, that we would get it onto our heart, because we know it's true of us, and that we'd be ready to pass it on to other people.
Put it down like this for point number three: “What are you willing to do to make disciples?” This is a question that we should all ask, whether we're a parent, a grandparent, a neighbor, a coworker. If you're a Christian, you are an ambassador, and you have been given the message of reconciliation. And it wasn't so you could just keep it between you and your family and this holy huddle. It's so that you could go proclaim his excellencies. Go with me to the book of 1 Peter, and this is 1 Peter, chapter 1. This is what we taught to the kids all week long. We were in the book of 1 Peter, and we taught them verses 3, all the way to 1. And we were here five nights in a row, just helping them understand the Scripture. And it wasn't like we were like, you need to repent and get saved right now. It's like let's just faithfully teach them what we know about Christ. Let's pray that God would make his word clear to them. That's the biggest prayer that we pray in kids’ ministry. God, make your Word clear. Use us to speak it clearly, and it says this. This is why, because in verse three of chapter one, he says, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” Hey, bless God because of his great mercy. He has given me the message of reconciliation. I now have this hope because of the resurrection of Jesus. And what am I supposed to do now that I have this hope? Look at verse 23. “Since you have been born again,” okay, because you have been born again, “not of perishable seed, but of imperishable. I born again through the living and abiding Word of God? For all flesh is like grass, and all its glory is like a flower of the grass. The grass withers and the flower falls, but the Word of the Lord it remains always. And this word is the good news that was preached to you.” Do you have the good news? Was the good news preached to you? Did it save you? Who are you telling about it? Let's pray.

God, we just want to thank you so much for your Word, God. We thank you for the gospel of Jesus, that your Son was sent down on a seek-and-save mission to save sinners. Father, we thank you that we have received this message of reconciliation, that it's not just something that I was taught, it's something that transformed my very soul. It transformed my heart. God, you have made us new. Father, we can remember the times where we were slaves to our sin. God, we remember times when we would continually just go back to the same sin over and over, and feeling frustrated about it because we saw the damage that played out in our lives. And God, you rescued us out of that. You opened our eyes to seeing who Jesus is. You opened our eyes to seeing the good news of the gospel, and you have made us new people. And you're going to keep us until the day that we meet you in the air. And Father, there are people all around us. There are people in this very room right now where they do not know the gospel, and they may know it intellectually, but they have not been transformed by it. God, I know that there's a whole generation of kids growing up in Christian homes. God, they're growing up in church, and they're hearing good things taught. And, God, there are parents in this room who are being faithful, and they are passing down their faith, and they are examples to their children. And when their children would just follow their example, it would lead them to Jesus. But, God, we need you to save them. God, we cannot transform their heart, and we're asking that you would. We're asking that you would have mercy on our kids, and that you would rescue them from their own sinful heart. God, help us to see that that is their greatest need. Help us to be more concerned about their eternity than their happiness. I pray that we would do everything it takes to pass down this glorious truth of the gospel that you would be so good to send your Son and slaughter him for us. God, we pray that you would save kids at this church, and that you would use their parents or their grandparents, and that there would be a great rejoicing in heaven by all the angels when they see what you do. God, may you receive glory. God, may you receive all honor and all praise because there's nothing that we can do but it's all because of what Jesus did. And God we pray that when you save souls as you promised you would, that you would get the glory. So, Father, help us now to turn our eyes to Jesus. God, help us to point all of our kids, all of our coworkers, anybody that will meet us. God, I pray that we would point them to your Son, because he is so good and so merciful. We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen.