Leaving behind the title / 2 Timothy 4:9-16
Today is Palm Sunday, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey to be crucified. It is called Palm Sunday because a great crowd who came up to Jerusalem on the feast held palm branches to meet Jesus (John 12:13). After Jesus ate the Last Supper on Thursday night, he went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray through the night. There he was captured by the army and the servants of the high priests, taken to Caiaphas and Pilate for questioning, and then taken Friday morning to Golgotha Hill to be crucified. He was judged and cursed for us and died on the cross for six hours from 9 am to 3 pm on Friday.
This morning, I am going to preach the 33rd sermon on the topic “What is sin?” The title of this morning's sermon is "Leave it and leave it." When I speak of the ‘Seven Ways of Life’, I say that life is ‘abandonment’ and ‘leaving’. But it means to leave the world and things in it and leave. That's right. However, what I am going to talk about this morning does not mean to leave the world and its things, but to leave the Lord and depart. It is a sin. The Lord calls us and chooses us, but we forsake Him and go away. It's really unfortunate and sad. It was unfortunate and sad for Cain to forsake God, and it was unfortunate and sad for the prodigal son to leave his father. It was unfortunate and sad that the disciples left the Lord and left. This morning I am speaking of the unfortunate people who forsook the Lord and left. Who has forsaken the Lord?
First, the disciples of Jesus forsook Him and left.
When Jesus was arrested and taken away by the army and the chief priests on Friday night, all the 12 disciples abandoned Him and left. “All the disciples forsook Jesus and fled” (Matthew 26:56). “All the disciples forsook Jesus and fled” (Mark 14:50). It wasn't just the twelve disciples. The other disciples who followed the Lord also deserted Jesus and ran away. “A young man was coming after Jesus, wrapped in a linen blanket, and was caught by the crowd, so he threw the linen blanket away and fled naked” (Mark 14:52). 11The disciples later repented and returned, but Judas Iscariot forever abandoned the Lord and went away. “Judah has forsaken this and has gone to his own place” (Acts 1:25). “As soon as Judas received the piece, he went out at night” (John 13:30). Judah left the Lord and went back to eternal night.
After Judas Iscariot, there were countless people who believed in and followed Jesus and then forsook Jesus. There were many apostates even within the Roman Empire, many apostates under the Japanese rule, and many apostates under the communist rule. It's unfortunate and sad. Some people forsook the Lord because they were afraid of persecution, and others left the Lord because they were tempted by the world's temptations and temptations. Some people have abandoned the Lord simply because they are too busy with the good things of the world. I hope you never forsake the Lord and go away. Because if you leave the Lord, it is an eternal night. Because if you forsake the Lord and go away, you will be cast out into eternal darkness. “Cast him out into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:30).
Second, Paul's co-workers forsook the Lord and left.
Dema wasn't the only one left. He pointed out that Gresgue had left and Dido had also left. No, he said that all the co-workers with Paul had left. “Crestes went to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia” (2 Timothy 4:10). “When I made my first excuse [at the time of my vindication of the gospel] no one was with me, but all have forsaken me” (2 Timothy 4:16). “You know that all who are in Asia have forsaken me, among them Phukelo and Hermogenes” (2 Timothy 1:15). We don't know exactly why they all left Paul. Maybe you lost your first love, maybe your first passion, or your first mission. Serving the Lord may have become too difficult and cumbersome. They may have been more attracted to political, economic, and social ministries rather than the gospel ministry.
Third, there were co-workers who did not leave Paul and stayed with him until the very end.
Luke was with Paul. “Only Luke is with me.” Luke was a close co-worker of the apostle Paul, who accompanied him all his life. Luke accompanied Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:10). After that, I went to Asia with Paul (Acts 20:6) and also to Jerusalem (Acts 21:5). After that, Paul was with him when he was imprisoned in Caesarea and when he was imprisoned in Rome (Acts 24:23, 28:16). Luke is always included in the word ‘we’ in the book of Acts. Luke was with Paul even when the apostle Paul wrote 2 Timothy while he was imprisoned in the second Roman prison. The doctor Luke was the apostle Paul's closest co-worker. Luke later wrote the Gospel of Luke and wrote the book of Acts, which describes the actions of the Apostle Paul.
At the end there was another man who was with the apostle Paul. He was Mark. He was a man who left Paul on his first missionary trip and returned to his home in Jerusalem, saying that the missionary trip was difficult. However, Mark later repented and became a co-worker in the ministry of the apostle Paul. He was also imprisoned with Paul. “Aristus, the prisoners with me, and Mark and Justus, the sons of Barnabas, greet you” (Colossians 4:10). “Greetings are Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, and Mark and Aristarchus, Demas and Luke, my fellow workers” (Phm 1:23,24). The apostle Paul wanted to see Mark before he died. Perhaps it was to comfort and encourage him. Mark must have had the joy of being with Paul by running to the apostle Paul at the last minute. He later became the author of the Gospel of Mark, the author of the Gospel of Mark. He left Paul midway, but later repented and returned to Paul to become a useful co-worker in Paul's work. “Bring Mark, for he is good for my work.” If there are people who have turned away from the Lord, they just need to come back. Then you might be a useful person.