Reformation Day Sermon - The Word of God is not bound!

2 Timothy 2:8-19 and the Word of God Not Bound

2 Timothy 2 verses 8 -19, this is the word of the living God. Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal.

But the word of God is not bound. Therefore, I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, if we have died with him, we will also live with him.

If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we deny him, he also will deny us. If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself. Remind them of these things, and charge them before God, not to quarrel about words which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene.

Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. But God's firm foundation stands bearing this seal.

The Lord knows those who are his, and let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity. You may be seated this morning. We may, toward the latter end of the message this morning, may, it just depends, we may speak specifically about some of Luther's 95 Theses that he nailed to the church door at Wittenberg, but our theme today, our subject today, our focus today is going to be on the word of God.

More specifically, our aim today is to highlight this truth, that the word of God is not bound. The word of God is not bound. So when we pick up, like we're picking up here in Timothy, right in the middle of a passage, right in the middle of a text, it's easy many times for us just to make that our launching point, but let's gather a little bit of context to understand what we're reading right here.

Paul’s Exhortation to Timothy and Sound Doctrine

Paul wrote two letters to Timothy that are preserved by the Holy Spirit, and we have these in the written word of God. Paul writes to Timothy, the young pastor, to encourage him to do these things, to teach and to preach the things that are in accord with sound doctrine.

From his first letter to Timothy, all the way through this second epistle here, he exhorts Timothy to stand fast against false teachers, and he reminds him to keep in the front of all his preaching this message, Jesus Christ and him crucified.

We read that in verse eight, remember Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, in first Timothy, in the first chapter, in the 15th verse, Paul makes this statement to Timothy, this is a faithful saying, and this is worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners.

The apostle Paul said, among whom I am chief. In the following five chapters in first Timothy, he lists specific instructions concerning prayer, for whom prayer is to be made. He lays out the qualifications in first Timothy for elders and deacons.

He then goes on to inform Timothy of the reality that some people will fall away from the faith by giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons. Now let me make this clear, he is not indicating that people will lose their salvation.

He is indicating that those who have come to faith in Jesus Christ, according to the gospel of Jesus Christ, will forever be preserved and kept in the faith because we are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, is what the word of God teaches us.

But he is speaking of these individuals who approach unto the faith of God and yet are led astray and who are led away by false teachings that to them seem to be much more palatable, seem to be much more pleasant, to them seem to be much more enjoyable.

But I personally wonder myself, how can you get any better than salvation in Jesus Christ? How can it get any better to know that we were dead in our trespasses and in our sins, that we were hell bound, that we had no hope, but Jesus Christ came.

He came to this earth born of a virgin. He came to this earth, lived a sinless life that we could not live ourselves, that he died intentionally so that he might be the propitiation for our sins. He was laid in the grave.

Why would you want anything better than that? Why would you want anything other than that? It's foolishness. He gives instruction to them. Moving through the remainder of 1 Timothy, it gives instruction on relational matters, how the young are supposed to treat the older folks with respect and how the church itself should respond to and treat the elders to whom God has given the oversight of the church.

He gives them this pattern and this print for church and how the church should be conducted. Here in 2 Timothy, we see and we hear the Apostle Paul continuing his exhortation to Timothy by reminding him in the first chapter of 2 Timothy to stir up the gift of God that is within him.

I think many times Christians are scared away from being stirred up. We don't want to wander off into emotionalism where we're carried away and we don't understand the truth of what we're hearing. But my friend, we ought to enjoy the gift that God has given to us in salvation.

And so he reminds Timothy, stir up the gift of God that is within you. And then in chapter 2, in the first preceding verses 1 through 7, he reminds Timothy to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ, to keep his focus where it needs to be, on Christ himself.

And we hear, right here where we pick up in verse 8, we hear Paul pointing Timothy to the source of inspiration, to the source of our hope, to the source of our strength. Remember Jesus Christ. By the way, what does Reformation Day have to do with this?

Because my friend, there have been men and women who have died so that we might have the word of God and we can stand today and publicly preach and teach to you that Jesus saves, Jesus saves. He is the source of our inspiration.

He is our hope. There is that old song, every hope that I have in this old sinful world is anchored in the blood of the lamb. Some babies can't carry two and I ain't singing to you anyway. Though the billows are raging and we're tall, there is that flow.

Only one thing will matter when my time shall come to die. The trail won't mean a thing, but the joy of knowing Jesus will. For he took my hope is anchored in there and so sweet, for he washed away my sin.

He gave me peace. My hope is anchored in his blood. My friend, remember Jesus Christ. Our hope is in Jesus Christ. Where is Paul writing from? Paul is writing from prison. Where, who's he writing to? He's writing to Timothy, where Paul himself is bound in chains as a criminal.

And for what cause? For what reason? For preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. When he makes this declarative statement to Timothy, but the word of God is not bound. Paul, having chains on his hands and having chains on his feet, reminds Timothy, they might chain you up.

The word of the living God is powerful. By the way, he wrote in Hebrews, the word of God is quick and it's powerful. It's living. It's a wedged sword. God, the work of regeneration in the heart of man.

God only is the savior. But throughout here, throughout the remainder of this second letter to Timothy, Paul expressly communicates this, that the word of God is inspired by God. We read in the third chapter of this same epistle in the 16th verse that the word of God is God breathed, it's theanoustos, it's breathed out by God and that it is profitable.

It is profitable for what? For doctrine, the scripture says, for teaching, for instruction in righteousness. Why? So that the man of God may be furnished so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped, ready for every good work that God has given us to do.

The Word of God Cannot Be Bound by Human Sin

So today, if you don't remember anything else that I've said today, please remember this. The word of God is not bound. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, mankind has attempted to minimize, mankind has attempted to challenge, mankind has attempted to bind up God's word.

But do not forget this, brothers and sisters, God's word is not bound. Throughout history, mankind has attempted to suppress the truth of the living God. He has attempted to suppress the truth of the living God by evilness and wickedness.

By living evil and wicked lives, man assumes that he can heap and press down and suppress the truth of God's word. But brothers and sisters, guess what? The word of God is not bound. God is not bound by your wickedness.

God is not bound by your sin, for he conquered sin and he conquered death on the cross at Calvary. Paul taught this in his letter to the Colossian church. He said he spoiled principalities and powers by making a show of them openly when he died on the cross at Calvary.

But know this church, wickedness in any degree does not lessen the reality, nor does it invalidate the power of God's word. Wickedness does not lessen the reality, nor does it invalidate the power of God's word.

Why? Because the word of God is not bound. Romans chapter 1 in verse 18 through verse 25, we read this, Romans chapter 1 verse 18, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

For what can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown it to them for his invisible attributes, namely his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world.

And they've been perceived by the things that have been made so that they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him. But they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened.

They claimed to be wise, but they became fools. They exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore, or because of this, because of this evil wickedness, therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and they worshipped and served the creature rather than the creator who is blessed forever.

Amen. Paul put a declarative amen truly, truly in that verse there. The Lord had that preserved. Now, a boy or a girl, a man or a woman, it's important that you know this today, whether you're old or whether you're young today, a boy or a girl, a man or a woman may go on living in sin, willfully shaking their fist at God along the way.

But know this, God will not be mocked for whatever you sow, you will most certainly reap. If you sow to the flesh, you will of the flesh reap corruption, damnation. But if you sow to the spirit, you will reap everlasting life.

Now, the world, the flesh and the devil, they have all tried to lessen the impact of God's word. They have attempted to silence the voice of God throughout the centuries. But church, the word of God is not bound.

The Pharisees attempted to bind up the word of God literally. By the way, Jesus is the word made flesh. The Pharisees attempted to bind up the word of God. They had him arrested. They had him tried illegally.

They pawned him off on the Roman government. The Roman government tried to silence him. They tried to silence the voice of God by having Jesus tortured, mocked, and ultimately by crucifying him. But the word of God is not bound.

According to God's word, Jesus arose on the third day. The hymn says up from the grave, he arose with a mighty triumph over his foes. He arose the victor from the dark domain and he lives forever with his saints to reign.

He lives. He lives. Christ Jesus lives today. We move forward in history just a little bit. In the Middle Ages, the attempt was made to bind up and to limit God's word by none other than the Roman Catholic Church.

In their vain attempts, they tried to subvert the authority of God's church and his word by placing it under the rule of earthly kings and queens. That was one of the great, the great issues of coming out of the Reformation was the fact that the church of the Roman Catholic Church wanted either the Pope to be their sole authority or the kings or queens of the land to be their sole authority.

But Jesus Christ is the King of Kings and Jesus Christ is the Lord of Lords. The church doesn't belong to the Roman Catholics. It doesn't belong to the Baptists. It doesn't belong to the Presbyterians.

The church of the Lord Jesus Christ belongs to the church. And from the head comes direction. From the head comes the word. From the head comes salvation outside of Jesus Christ. Let it here be known today that all authority, all earthly authority, let's remember this, all earthly authority is granted by God himself.

The powers that be are ordained of God. This is what the word of God says. So those authorities that do it very well, rightly submit to his kingship. Amen. I mean, should the should the pot not submit to the potter?

How can the pot not submit to the potter? How can the servant not submit to his master? I know that's not popular in these days, but my friend, it is the truth. You will either be a slave of sin or you are a slave of Jesus Christ.

I am happily a slave of Jesus Christ. Thank God we find this throughout time in these middle ages. They were referred to again as the dark ages, because for a period of time, it seemed that the light that lights the world had gone out.

It seems like a lot of the gospel had been snuffed out, but let's remember, Kenny, the word of God is not bound. Let's remember and not forget that. Let's remember Jesus Christ. He ever lives, he never dies, and there's never going to be a need for him to die because the work that he did is perfect and complete and final.

Reformation Pre-Reformers: Wycliffe, Hus, and Tyndale

So we thank God for men like John Wycliffe, men like John Wycliffe in the 1300s, who is known as being the morning star of the reformation. Now, typically, when we consider and we think about the reformation, Martin Luther is the name that comes up.

John Calvin is the name that comes up. Orange Vingley is the name that comes up. But my friend, there were pre-reformers, men like John Wycliffe. Listen to this. This comes from an article entitled Reformers You Might Not Know by a man named Chuck Meyer.

Listen to what Chuck Meyer wrote here concerning Wycliffe. He said, based on his study of scripture, he wrote and he preached against the church's teachings on purgatory. He wrote and he preached against the church's teachings on the sale of indulgences, and he wrote against the church's teaching on the doctrine of transubstantiation.

Because of this, John Wycliffe was banished from his university and he was deserted by his friends. However, in his exile, some of his students joined him and together they worked on translating the Bible into the language of the common people so people could read for themselves the truths found in God's word.

What we fail to remember and I think why we fail to appreciate the significance of the reformation is that the word of God had certainly been kept from the common people, but the word of God is not bound.

It will not be contained. He cannot be kept in a cage, so to speak. And he goes on to write about Wycliffe, Wycliffe knew that getting the words of scripture into the language and the hearts of the people, that it would change their lives and would make them less vulnerable to unbiblical teachings and practices.

You want to know why it's important for you to be a church member, why it's important for you to be a faithful attender of God's house, why it's important for you to be attentive to the word when it's taught to you so that you are able to combat the lies that the false teachers bring against the church of God almost on a minute by minute basis.

It's important. This is a privilege that we have. After Wycliffe in history comes Jan Hus. Jan Hus, he was as written concerning him as Roman Catholicism continued to dominate the religious landscape of the world with his teaching of justified living by works and papal church authority, which, by the way, that is the Roman Catholic teaching that says you are justified by faith plus works.

But the scriptures teach us that we are not justified before God based upon what Jesus did and our works. Amen, Chris. But we are justified before God based upon the finished work of Jesus Christ and that alone.

When we stand before God on the last day, he's not going to ask this, but if he was going to ask this, why should you be allowed into the kingdom of God? Why should you be allowed into heaven? We will have no other answer to say but this, because Jesus Christ, your only begotten son, shed his blood for the nation we have, church.

Hus determined that the writings of John Wycliffe were of great significance. Wycliffe taught personal piety and purity based on the Bible as the authority for the church. He denounced the extravagant lifestyles of the clergy, and he taught that no pope or bishop could establish doctrine contrary to the Bible, which is what went on for centuries.

And for his writings and for his preachings, Jan Hus was excommunicated by the pope. He was kicked out of the Roman Catholic Church. Eventually, he was sentenced to be burned along with his writings. On July 6, 1415, Jan Hus was burned at the stake, offered a chance to publicly denounce his claims.

Hus said that unless he could be shown from scripture that what he was doing was wrong, he would not recant. Sounds a little bit like what Martin Luther said during the time at the Diet of Worms. And it's written that Hus was tied to a stake.

His dying prayer was this, Lord Jesus, it is for thee that I patiently endure this cruel death. I pray thee have mercy on my enemies. What a godly man. Following on the heels of Wycliffe and Hus, we have William Tyndale.

William Tyndale is the man that translated the Bible into the English language. Did he get in trouble for that? Yes. Was he hated for that? Yes. But thanks be unto God for the unspeakable gift that we have today because men and women were willing to die to shed their blood for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We can't even get out of bed on Sunday morning and come to church. Regardless of his glowing endorsement of Tyndale, Sir Thomas More wrote this, along with the King of England and many others, he hunted William Tyndale and he sought to have him destroyed because William Tyndale had a consuming passion to translate the holy scriptures into English from the Latin Vulgate to English.

Tyndale wanted an English Bible so even a common plowman could read it so that you and I have it today. Tyndale's passion to have the scriptures available to every common man defied the Roman church. Having a Bible in English was illegal in the year 1408.

According to the Constitutions of Oxford, which forbade anyone from translating or reading any part of the Bible in the language of the people without permission of the ecclesiastical authorities. Whoever reads the scriptures in English could forfeit their lands, their goods and their lives.

They were considered heretics to God by the Roman Catholic Church, enemies to the crown and traitors to the kingdom. Tyndale knew all of this. Yet never let it deter him from his work. His words to the Catholic critics were this.

If God spared me my life, ere these many years, I will cause the boy that drives the plow to know more of the scripture than you do, popes and priests. Hallelujah for that. Hallelujah for that. Boy, country terms, I'll make you want to charge hell with a water pistol, won't it?

I mean, we've got this privilege. We've got this privilege. We've got this word. And so in those dark ages where it seemed like the light of the gospel had been extinguished, then comes the reformers.

And we had that term coming out of the Reformation post Tenebrous Lux. It means after darkness, light. Because the reformers determined that the word of God should be front and the word of God should be center and the word of God should be the heart of everything that comes from the church of the living God.

The Reformation’s Return to God’s Word Alone

Stephen Nichols said this in closing. We're not going to talk about the 95 Thesis, we're just going to say this and we're going to close. Stephen Nichols of Ligonier Ministries wrote this concerning the Reformation.

He said, what is Reformation Day? It is the day the light of the gospel broke forth out of darkness. It was the day that began the Protestant Reformation. It was the day that led Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox and many other reformers to help the church find its way back to God's word as the only authority for faith and life and leading the church back to the glorious doctrines of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

It kindled the fires of missionary endeavors. It led to hymn writing and congregational singing, and it led to the centrality of the sermon and the preaching for the people of God. It is, the Reformation is the celebration of a theological, ecclesiastical and a cultural transformation.

And so as you stand with us this morning, in conclusion, I want to say this. If the word of God has thrilled your soul today, know this, the word of God is not bound. And if today the word preaching of the word of God has caused you to be indignant, it's caused you to be angry, then know this, that the same word of God that softens the heart of man is the same word of God that will harden the heart of the sinner.

And you must know this, the word of God is not bound. The word of God will have free course because God is sovereign. So what must our response be today? Quite simply, it's this, repent of your sins, repent of your sins, repent of your good deeds, because your good deeds are not going to save you.

Repent of your sins, turn to Jesus Christ, cast your whole self on Christ and you will be saved. For Christ died, little children, Christ died for your sins. You older folks, Christ died for your sins, Christ died for your sins, and it is his mercy that you are hearing this word of the gospel come to you.

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.