The Entrusted Good Treasure
II Timothy 1:1-14
NO 10/7/07 EW

Scene

The early church when Paul was writing to Timothy is nothing like what we think of as church.  Church was taking place in homes rather than a wonderfully prepared sanctuary such as we worship in.  Owners of the homes had powerful influence over teaching and preaching.  So there existed a high level of chaos as these home churches attempted to hammer out the meaning of “Church.”

Along with the difficulty of the home church situation came the intensity of attempting to meld cultures together that had been enemies for centuries.  The Jews who were coming to “the Way” demanded maintaining the Jewish laws and customs.  The Gentiles, that’s us, demand their philosophical grounding from Socrates and Aristotle be followed.  How would it be possible to bring these vastly differing cultures into a unified church?

To complicate the church scene even further was the life of Paul.  How was one to believe this guy?  He started out persecuting those who followed the Way.  Now he is in jail.  Home church owners were using his reputation to deny his teachings so they could claim power in this new venture.

            Timothy’s Uncertainty

And then there is Timothy, who is unsure who he is supposed to follow or lead.  He cannot give a testimony as to his conversion experience because he’s not experienced anything like Paul.  Perhaps he should just do like the disciples and go fishing.  Paul speaks to this situation and tells Timothy to “Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.”  Hopefully, we will be able to look into our hearts and discover that on-going gift of the “good treasure entrusted” to each of us.

The Good Treasure Entrusted to Each of Us

Paul reminds Timothy that his “conversion” has come through two women of great faith, his grandmother and mother.  His call is not in doubt and is the very basis of the good treasure. 

As Keith reminded us last Sunday evening, Paul tells Timothy, God did not give any of us the spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and love and self-discipline.  These are gifts of God rather than anything we can do for God.  We cannot make ourselves brave in the Spirit.  We are incapable of developing the power and love and self-discipline that Paul speaks of to Timothy even with all the self-help books on the market today.  All of what Paul is talking about comes as a gift from God. 

Paul writes for Timothy to rely on the power of God, “who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his purpose and grace.”  You see, God has called each of us for God’s purpose rather than because we have accomplish enough good works.

            The Ability to Hear

Part of the treasure is the ability to hear God speak.  Now I understand that most of us have never heard a voice that we would call God’s voice but that does not mean that God is not speaking to us.  The biblical description of God speaking is consistently a voice that is quiet and still.  God’s voice calls us to be still and listen.  For some that is a difficult discipline to learn but it is critical to hearing God speak to us.

            The Ability to See

Once again, the ability to see is a gift from God to be treasured and guarded.  God allows us to look around and see how we can partner in redeeming the world.  What are the needs right here in this church?  What are the needs in a five mile radius of this church?  What kind of needs do we see nationally and internationally that we are nudged by God to make response?  God gives us eyes to see in order to know where to put our efforts in life.

                        Our Mission

We are the body of Christ in the world today and our mission is to always be in mission.  “Charity” may begin at home but it certainly needs to go beyond home.  No doubt, we are to pay attention to the needs of those within our church family but if we stop there, we are in danger of losing the treasure entrusted to us by our Lord.

We are to meet God and join in whatever God is about in our world because it is really God’s world.  We are to meet God here and now.

                                    “I Met God Today”

A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with Twinkies and a six-pack of root beer and he started his journey.
When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man. He was sitting in the park just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer, when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him a Twinkie.
The old man gratefully accepted it and smiled at him. His smile was so pleasant that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered him a root beer. Again, the old man smiled at him. The boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.
As it grew dark, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave, but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and gave him a hug. He gave him his biggest smile ever.
When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?
 He replied, "I had lunch with God." Before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"
Meanwhile, the old man, also radiant with joy, returned to his home. His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked, "Dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?" He replied, "I ate Twinkies in the park with God." However, before his son responded, he added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."  (The Archbishopric of Johannesburg and Pretoria, http://www.greece.org:8080/opencms/opencms/HEC_Organizations/gopatalex/sa/index.html, 10/4/07.)
We find God in the common interactions in life.  I think we generally think of meeting God when we die but I’m convinced that our Lord is right here with us through the Spirit and we life in this Kingdom each day.  When we share our Twinkies in the part it is with God.
            Guard the Treasure Entrusted to You
Our way of guarding things is to lock them up somewhere where no one can take them from us.  We hold onto treasures with all our might and we only refer to them or show them to very special people in our lives.  This is not the way to guard the treasures given by God!  You guard the treasure given by God by giving it away.  You guard this great treasure by using it for other people. 

Conclusion

The Entrusted Good Treasure given us by God is one that flows.  It flows from the Triune God, through each of us, to others.  It is always an “other” directed flow.  And this is where some difficulties arise because it is God’s gift passed on by humans.  When it comes to us it may be one thing and become very different when it leaves us to reach others.  As one colleague stated this week, “It’s like having a hand full of diamonds in a Walmart bag.” 

Now, that does not take away one speck from the gift.  Even when we get it wrong or when we make a mistake, the treasured gift from God maintains its value.  Paul reminds Timothy and us that God is always present working with us and with others.  We are not in this alone.  We cannot do what God desires of us as loners.  This is a “we” life with a “we” treasure and our Lord is right with us each moment.

Let Paul’s words to Timothy rekindle the Spirit of God in your soul.  Even the tiniest spark is all it takes to crank up life anew.  Even the smallest beam is light is all it takes to be in touch with the Light of our Lord.  We guard the treasure given us by using it with the Lord’s Spirit in our world.  So, I encourage us all to guard the treasure placed in our heart by the Lord!  Amen.