When Pastors Stoke the Fire

In Paul’s first letter to Timothy he had already established that the best medicine for false teaching and apostasy is “sound doctrine” (1 Tim 1:10; 4:3). So vital is sound doctrine to the health of the church that it is something to be pursued (1 Tim 6:11), fought for (1 Tim 6:12), and even suffered for (2 Tim 1:8; 2:3, 11–13).

The epistle of 2 Timothy is a call for every believer to seek strength and pursue faithfulness in spiritual service. Paul used his apostolic authority and personal friendship (2 Tim 1:1–2) to call upon Timothy to stoke the fire in his bones to preach the gospel.

Paul is encouraging Timothy to remain faithful to his calling . . . and Paul is in prison! Now that is a testimony of the power of God. That kind of lifestyle does not happen from spending time at the social club, or camping all summer, or chasing ever dollar and every opportunity to entertain your flesh. Paul was in the worse case scenarios often, and those situations became his greatest seminary classes. Paul learned to praise God in all things.

Bill Stafford often says, “Some people need to learn to praise God on general principle.” We had better learn to praise God even though you can’t feel Him, see Him, touch Him or see Him.

Many people can only praise God when they have the job they want, when the kids are behaving, when the neighbors aren’t talking about you, and the doctor gives you a clean bill of health.

You may see a brother praising God and you say of him, “Look, that man, he is a blessed man. He has it all together.” But that is not necessarily true. The man that is blessed may be the man that is fighting Hell by the acre . . . and is seeing the sufficiency of God’s grace a reality everyday in his life. God is pressing him and molding him and sooner of later he will come forth as gold tried in the fire.

Great men and women of God do not come from lives of comfort. They come from lives of pain and sorrow and tears and heartbreak.

And we need some Christians who will make up their minds that whatever the cost to stand for God and to stay in the Word. They will stand dedicated to their calling, dead to their circumstances, determined to not waver not falter and faint, that God’s power may be revealed in their faithfulness.

God has specially picked you out and given you a supreme calling and responsibility to spread His “good news” of the Saving Power of Jesus Christ and to teach the next generation His inerrant, infallible, and inspired Word. I’m just looking for those who want to be counted among the ranks of the faithful.

What was it like to be chained to the Apostle Paul. His back got to hurting. He would start shifting, couldn’t sleep so I might as well preach. “Hey, mister soldier, let me tell you why I’m here. I’m guilty…I use to slaughter Christians. On the road to Damascus to continue my plight. And all of a sudden there was a light so bright… and I met the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ… and I’ll never be the same. I’m guilty as charged. I’m dedicated to the Lord and the preaching of His Word.”

“Death, no I’m not scared of death.” Paul pulls a coin from his pocket and says, “Heads I win, tails I win. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

I could just hear some of those soldiers saying after their 8 hour shift were up, “Hey, chain me to a drunk. Chain me to a thief. Chain me to anybody…just don’t chain me to Paul!”

I so want to preach that I can comfort the distressed and distress the comfortable. Jesus never did preach neutrality. He said you are either for me or against me. He told the rich young yuppie ruler, “If you want to walk with me it is going to cost you your life.” Salvation is a walk into death. It is a crucified life. You’re not your own. You give up your rights. But a religion without reality. We want relationships without regeneration. We want church but not conviction. Christianity but not conversion. We want victory without agony.

Are you as sick and tired as I am of this fluffy, cotton candy preaching? It melts before you can digest it…taste good, gets you excited, but will starve you to death.

Where are the faithful men of God with a backbone, who are not afraid to call this generation to repentance, who are not afraid to preach the judgment of God, who are not afraid to expound the Scriptures.

You say, “Well, people don’t want that anymore. They want to be told how to be happy; they want to feel positive; they want their self esteem to be enhanced; they want rocking music and simple power-point outline.”

What they want are their ears tickled and their passions pleased and they don’t care at all of what God wants.

I wish to admonish you as Paul did Timothy in 2 Tim 1:6 to stir up the gift of God in you. “And for this reason (your sincere faith within you) I remind you” said Paul, “to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you,” stoke the fire, blow on the coals, fan the embers, rekindle the flame. Have a blazing passion for the ministry of the gospel!

Where is that burning coal?
Is it but one?
Is it red and yellow, but crusted with black sut?
May the breath of God’s Spirit blow upon it today.
May the flame be revived.
Stoke that fire.
Fall in love with your high calling again.
Burn for God’s glory.
And stand up and sing, I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold
I’d rather be His than have riches untold.

O God, give us preachers who will walk into the pulpits scared and frightened of their duty.
And when the people leave church they have been in the presence of a Holy God and they are never the same again.

Be Consumed for God.