Today's Scripture Reading (June 17, 2024): 2 Timothy 4
Outside my window, the weather seems
to be improving. Summer is coming, but I know it will pass much too quickly. I
have to admit that this is my favorite season of the year. I love to be able to
sit in the sun on my deck and read. Or to find a beach and read there. (I know,
there seems to be a theme here: the idea of sitting somewhere with a book.)
Where I live, there are many
descriptions of the seasons. The description I like the most is that I live in
an area with four seasons. Those seasons are almost winter, winter, still
winter, and summer. Probably the most accurate description of the seasons is
that I live in a place with only two seasons: winter and construction.
Construction is an ever-present reality in a place where crews rush to get
things done in the short time that the weather is appropriate for the job.
There is an old story about a Church
of England priest who got saved while pastoring an Anglican Church. When Jesus
changed his life, he started to preach the Gospel to his church to the point
that they all got saved. Then, he began to preach the Gospel in neighboring areas,
and the pastors of the Anglican Churches in those neighboring areas were
offended. And so they went to the Bishop in charge of the area and demanded
that he stop the rogue priest. When the Bishop confronted the preaching pastor,
the Bishop said, "I hear you are always preaching, and you don't seem to
be doing anything else." The Anglican pastor replied, "Well, Bishop,
I only preach during two seasons of the year." The Bishop said, "I'm
glad to hear that; so, in what seasons do you preach?" The Anglican Pastor
answered, "In season and out of season!"
Timothy is a pastor under Paul's
charge. And he reminds the pastor that he should be ready to preach the Gospel
at all times or in all seasons. A phrase is shared among pastors that we should
be prepared to "Preach, Pray, or Die" at all times. A pastor friend
once commented to me that if it were a choice, he would rather die. And I
understand his reaction. However, the intent of Paul's instructions is that the
Gospel of Jesus should never be far from our minds. And we should always be
ready to share our hope for the future.
But the message isn't just for
pastors. We all preach. Sometimes, we use words, but most of the time, we
preach our theology by how we live and being Christ to everyone we meet. The
people who surround us in what is quickly becoming a post-Christian culture
will know what Christianity is by the way that we live our lives. We are the
only Bible they will ever read. And we must remember that, regardless of
whether we are in church, out on a night on the town, or watching a football
game with friends. In every season, we are Christ to a world that desperately
needs to know him.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Peter
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