Steven Furtick - Protect Your Confidence (09/29/2018)
In 2 Timothy 1:11-14, Paul urges Timothy to guard the good deposit entrusted to him—the gospel and calling—with the Holy Spirit's help, emphasizing that vulnerability signals value, circumstances attack confidence, trusting God means believing He trusts us, and true safety comes from the indwelling Spirit amid life's riots.
Honoring the Church and Our Calling
On behalf of my wife and our whole family, thanks for the love and support that you show us. Not only Pastor Appreciation Month, but we feel so supported and loved by this church 24-7, 366 on leap year and you mean so much to us. And it's a privilege to be your pastor.
I think a lot of pastors wish they could do something else. If they had any other job offers, they'd probably bail on this gig, but I love it. And so I'm very, very grateful for the way that you represent Jesus Christ in our community as a church. People talk about you all over the world. Everywhere I go to preach, I was in Brooklyn, New York this week and Toledo, Ohio. And you know, everywhere I go, it could be thousands of miles away, but people are like, God, I want to move to Charlotte. And it ain't for the Bobcats. We love the Bobcats, but let's say man, if we could ever be a part of a church like Elevation and it's not the preaching specifically or the music specifically they bring up, it's the whole deal. And what you're part of is very special.
So we also honor you, don't we, Hall, on this Pastor Appreciation Month and all of our church staff who work so hard, all of our campus pastors, and all the people who do it behind the scenes. I think this church is served by the best staff in America. And if I didn't think that, I'd fire them. So, you know, I mean it. Well, thank you, Brian.
And if you have your Bible and you don't know where to turn, that means you haven't been coming the last few weeks because we are bogged down, spinning our wheels in the mud of this great verse. And we're talking about second Timothy chapter one, verses nine through 14. Let's skip the first two verses this week and let's just go from verse 11, where it says, and of this gospel, I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.
You can't just stand up and preach effectively because you want to hear yourself talk and you have to have a calling to do it. And if you don't have a calling, you won't do it very consistently. You might be able to do it a little while, but you won't, you won't do it very long. And Paul certainly had a calling that supersedes any, any kind of calling that, that I have. And, um, God used him to write so much of the Bible and he knew he was called.
The Effects of a True Calling
And he said, there are some effects of his calling. And we talked about these a couple of weeks ago where he said, that is why verse 12 I am suffering as I am. So the calling doesn't necessarily just lead to success. It leads to suffering as well. And sometimes the suffering is a success. You don't see that at the time, but you look back and say, God, let me go through that. So I could have a deeper understanding of, of, of this. And I wouldn't have this if I didn't go through that.
And so Paul is putting some things together here. He says, yet this is no cause for shame because I know whom I have believed. I don't know if you'll leave this series knowing exactly what you believe about, you know, the return of Christ and when's he coming back and who gets to see him first. I don't know if you'll get to know, know what you believe about global warming or evolution or anything like that. But if we can draw close to Jesus and know whom we believe, he'll show us what to believe and what to do in every situation in our lives.
So I know whom I have believed that's past tense and am convinced is still working. I believed it before I went to prison. Paul says, and I still believe it in the prison that he is able to guard what I've entrusted to him until that day. What you heard from me, keep, keep, don't let it go. You know, when you get a sermon, you need to make sure that you take it home in a doggy bag. Cause when I preach, you got to keep that sermon. The devil wants to snatch it. He wants to send somebody right in your way to aggravate you and make you contradict the messages that I preach.
But, but you got to keep it, keep what you heard as the pattern of sound teaching with faith and love in Christ Jesus. When you see people up preaching about Jesus and they don't have love in their voice and they don't have love for sinners in their approach and they don't have love for people at the forefront of the message that they're presenting, it's not the gospel. He said that the pattern of sound teaching will be amplified by faith and love in Christ Jesus.
Now, um, here's the verse we want to deal with today. Guard the good deposit that has been entrusted to you. Guard it with the help of the Holy spirit who lives in us. Our word for the week is spirit. We've had salvation, sanctification, sovereignty, suffering, sound teaching. That wasn't a word, but. did the best we could this week at spirit and we're not going to start here, but we're going to end here.
And I was so passionate about what I wanted you to hear next week that I extended the series to seven weeks because next week you're going to hear something very powerful. So I want you to, um, look forward to that this week. Our word is spirit. And, uh, I have some cool things I want to show you from the word of God, some connections, four of them. specifically for connections here in this passage. that Paul makes for Timothy. And I believe God wants to make for you. No takers, get ready. You will have a four point outline to rock your world and soothe your spirit. when you leave today.
Vulnerability Signals True Value
Number one, I want to talk about the connection between vulnerability and value. And see, it's an interesting connection because Paul says, guard the good deposit. Can we see the verse again, please on the screen? Verse 14, guard the good deposit. Okay. The word deposit means very much what it would mean to us today. It's a property entrusted to another. money, things, or even people.
So there's a deposit that God has given Timothy that Paul instructs him to guard. So in some ways, this passage is not just a teaching. It's an alarm. It's saying, warning, there's something that you're holding that's under attack. You don't tell somebody to guard something if nobody's coming for it. And you don't tell somebody to guard something if it's not worth anything. You don't have to guard junk. That's why some of y'all don't lock your car. You are praying somebody will steal it. As a matter of fact, you would give God an extra offering if somebody would. Blessed insurance, Jesus is mine. That's your... Because you don't guard something if it's no good. Right.
Do you ever feel vulnerable? Just like... Maybe the devil picks on you a little extra. Maybe not all the time, but some weeks. Do you ever feel like other people are more strong and more assured than you? I mean, how many of you have an area of your life where you constantly feel vulnerable? It could be like a situation you're constantly having to go into. Maybe you don't like to talk in front of people or maybe it's a challenge, a social challenge where you always feel like the awkward one. You don't know what to say. Vulnerability.
Vulnerability, I speak for a living, is an interesting thing because vulnerability signifies value. And if something is very valuable, it is also by nature very vulnerable. Let me put it in a little plainer English. Thieves do not break into empty houses. So if your life is under attack, that means you must be carrying something good inside. Because if you didn't have anything good inside of you, you'd be left alone. If you've had a few windows broken out in your life, there must be a sign that there's something that the enemy...
Do you believe in the devil? If you don't watch the news. You don't have to read the Bible to believe in the devil. Just watch the news. Just go out in public. Just drive on Monday morning. Now, I believe in the devil. And I don't know exactly how it works when he attacks us. And I think sometimes we give the devil too much credit. You know where we call it a spiritual attack, but it really might be the fact that our diet is horrible and our eating is out of whack. And that's why we feel sluggish. It's not a spiritual attack as much as it's a physical responsibility. It's a result of our malnutrition.
Nevertheless, I wanted to say to you that when you have a good deposit, like Timothy did, you have to be on your guard. Because the thing that makes you valuable also makes you vulnerable. And the reason you feel vulnerable is because God has given you something that's valuable. They don't try to strip the ball if you're not carrying it on the football field. If you just got hit, that means you've got the ball. It's a good deposit. Everybody say, good deposit.
Reappraising Your Value in Struggles
So the next time you feel vulnerable, and the next time you feel like your life is under attack, and the next time you feel your emotions starting to pull you down, recognize it for what it is. It's a compliment pointing toward the value of the deposit that God has placed inside of you. It means you've got something good that God is trying to work out in your life. You wouldn't be vulnerable if you weren't valuable. Touch the person next to you and tell them, I've got something good inside of me.
That's why sometimes I struggle with all this negative thinking, because the enemy knows that if I ever break out of this negative thinking that I'm going to achieve something that's going to set the kingdom of darkness back. That's why sometimes I feel sad, and I don't even really know why. It's because there's something in me that if it ever gets out, it's going to wreak havoc on everything that stands against the purpose of God. So I might be vulnerable, but that's all right too, because my vulnerability points to my value. I got something good, something good, something good!
Touch seven people and tell them something good, something good, something good, something good, good. Alright, that's an introduction. I wanted to tell you that you need to reappraise the value of your calling in Christ. The fact that you struggle is not a sign that you're worthless and useless to God. It's a sign that you're so worthwhile and valuable to God that there's an enemy that opposes you.
If you're struggling raising your kids, reappraise the value that their life must be intended to have if you can raise them without killing them, reappraise the value. If you're struggling right now to follow through on an opportunity, don't quit. The sign that you want to quit is a sign that the opportunity is more valuable than you know. If you have a gift, a skill, an ability, and you constantly doubt that ability, it's not a sign that your gift is not valuable. In fact, your timidity and your self-doubt may be one of the greatest signs that not only is your gift real, but it's larger than you understand at the time.
Vulnerability means value, and value means vulnerability. I remember the first time I bought a nice shirt, and they told me, be careful with this shirt. It's very delicate. I said, no, no, no. I paid a lot of money for this shirt. It's a nice shirt. And they said, right, the finer the clothing, the more delicate the materials. You would think that the more money you paid for it, the less you'd have to worry about it. But the more valuable it is, the more susceptible it becomes.
And so when your life is under attack, reappraise the value, guard the good deposit. If the deposit wasn't any good, and if you weren't worth anything, you wouldn't be fighting like you're fighting. Reappraise the value.
Circumstances Target Your Confidence
And protect the vulnerability, number two, number two, number two, number two, number two. I want to make a connection between circumstance and confidence. Circumstance and confidence. See, I think we understand often what the enemy is actually attacking through the struggles of our lives. I used to think that when something bad happened to me, that was a devil. When something good happened, that was God. And you know why I thought that? Because a lot of people teach that. It's kind of like accepted conventional wisdom.
But if you've been through this series, you've already seen how untrue and unsteady that paradigm is. Paul, y'all. Shipwrecked, bruised, scars up and down his arms, lashes across his back, hungry, naked, in peril, danger in the country, in danger in the city, in danger in Waxhaw, in danger in Atlanta, in danger in Toronto, in danger in Monroe. Amen. Amen.
So the enemy will attack your circumstance. But he only attacks your circumstance because he's after your confidence. If I steal your wallet, I'm not really interested in your wallet. Okay? I'm interested in what's in your wallet. I would demonstrate this, but it would be challenging to pull that off. I mean, if you look at the whole passage we've been studying. You know, he saved us, called us to holy life, not because of anything we've done, but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace is given to us in Christ Jesus for the beginning of times. It has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus. It has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to life through the gospel. And of this gospel has appointed a herald apostle teacher. That's why I'm suffering as I am. Yet there's no cause for shame.
He's setting up a diametric opposition between circumstance and confidence. In fact, I thought about calling this message, Protect Your Confidence. And unless I can think of a better title, that's what we'll call it. So write it down. Protect Your Confidence. Protect Your Confidence. When you finish writing it down, turn to the person next to you and say, Protect Your Confidence. Protect Your Confidence.
Because when your circumstances struggle, it's your confidence that is under attack. What I mean is, cancer can't beat you if you're a believer. Why? Because Jesus has destroyed death. Bankruptcy can't break your spirit if you're a believer because we don't hope in what we see. That's true. When you feel low in your emotions, that doesn't break you. What breaks you as a believer isn't when your circumstances start to fight against you. It's when your circumstances cause you to question your confidence. confidence. That's when the devil's got you.
I'm preaching it pretty good, but I'm not quite there yet. So I was talking to a famous preacher one time, and I told her I admired her for her confidence. And she said to me, that's because I made a decision many years ago in the ministry. Now, this woman has been ministering for decades and decades and decades and decades. So I leaned in to hear what she said next. She said, I decided that the devil might hit me with a thousand doubts before I stand up to preach. She might hit me with all the reasons that my sermon isn't fresh or these people don't like me. And he might try to tell me a million things during the week about why I'm not qualified to preach. But I decided to never give the devil my confidence before I stand up to preach. Because if I give him my confidence, I have nothing to stand on. Confidence.
You know when you sin, it doesn't change your relationship with God. If you have a relationship with God, sin can't alter your relationship with God. Come on, that would mean you're holding on to him. But if I read my Bible correctly, he has saved us. So he's holding on to me. If I'm holding on to him, we're in trouble anyway. I may as well go ahead and get the parachute ready if I'm holding on to him. Because I'm going down. Sin doesn't change my relationship with God. It takes away my confidence. In my relationship with God.
Scripture says that we can boldly approach the throne to find help in our time of need. But the enemy would have you to throw away your confidence so that you lose your boldness. Are you a confident person? My guess would be it depends on the arena. Like I'm super confident doing this. I still struggle. I get nervous. Sometimes I think I don't have what it takes. Every time I think I don't have what it takes. But at the end of the day, I know God's called me to do this. I have a degree of confidence. confidence.
But if you put me on a basketball court... Hold on. Let's back up. Let's be real honest. If you put me in any kind of athletic competition, anything with a ball, I lose all my confidence. Because my confidence is circumstantial. What Paul is saying here is, Timothy, I would that you would get a confidence that doesn't rest in circumstance. I would that you join with me in suffering for the gospel and cast not away your confidence.
Now, the enemy may attack your circumstance, but he's after your confidence. That's good news. Because your circumstance doesn't have to improve for your confidence to increase. If this is true, I love having y'all on stage. I feel another level of preaching anointing right now. I wanted to tell somebody that your circumstance can be really jacked up and messed up and tore up and shot up, but your circumstance is not your confidence. And if you keep your confidence, God can work through the circumstance. Because we don't have a circumstantial confidence. We have a Christ-centered confidence, confidence, confidence. We stand on our confidence in Christ.
They're a little slow to their feet. I'll just keep screaming. My confidence doesn't stand in what happened. Okay? Let's clarify. Let's clarify. Let's clarify. Because this could get out of control. If we stop here, you might go out of here a little cocky. I'm confident. Back up off me. You don't want none of this. I got my confidence. Confidence in what? Confidence in whom? Confidence in you, if you're anything like me, isn't going to last you until the sun goes down.
It's interesting here. I found a connection. I've been wrestling with it for weeks. It was intriguing to me how, in verse 12, Paul says that he is convinced. He is convinced. Paul is convinced that God is able to guard what he, Paul, has entrusted to God until that day. Now that day probably means the day that Paul will stand before Christ or the coming of the Lord. But he means until the end. Until this is all said and done. Whatever I go through, I'm convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the final whistle sounds.
But now, verse 14 is a little different. Here Paul is telling Timothy, guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you.
From Trusting God to Being Entrusted by Him
I want to talk number three about the connection between trusting and entrusted. Trusting and entrusted. See, I think this will make a lot of sense for some people because I really do think the majority of people in our church believe that they can trust God. I do, and you know it's hard sometimes. You can't see him. You can't feel him. You can't talk with him. He doesn't physically hand you a deposit to put in your bank account. So, you know, it can be hard to trust somebody you can't see. And, of course, we can't completely understand him, so it's hard to trust somebody you can't understand.
But I think when it comes down to it, we believe that he is able. I think most of us… Now, there are a lot of people here who may be investigating faith or may be skeptical or may be returning or something like that. But most people that take the time to come to church because it's a hassle. You could be doing something else. You have to come here. Nobody marched you in. So, most people who come here, like, believe in some degree. You may be progressing in it. It's growing. You know, you're working progress. So, I believe God is able. So, I'm with Paul on that. Okay? So, I believe he's able. Able to heal. Able to save. Able to deliver. Able to make a way where there is no way. Able to move the mountain. You know, able to calm the wind and the waves. He's able. Everybody say he's able! Amen, Oregon! Say he's able! Good preaching.
I have noticed something. I think what…. I get it. I get it. Paul's telling Timothy, Sometimes it's easier to believe that you can trust God than it is to believe that God has entrusted you. You know where Peter went walking on the water, and he saw the wind and the waves, and he had his eyes on Jesus, and he started to sink because he doubted? For a long time, I thought he was doubting Jesus. But then I heard a preacher get up one time, and he said, Maybe Peter wasn't doubting Jesus as much as he was doubting Peter. It says that he saw the wind, he saw the waves, and he started to doubt. Who did he doubt? Not Jesus. Jesus is doing fine on the water. Jesus is probably like skiing, you know? Wouldn't you think so? Probably dropped the rope.
And so, Paul says, Timothy, you know how God is able and you can trust him to keep what you've committed to him? Paul's talking about his life. He said, Look, I don't know if I'll die in prison. I don't know if I'll live to preach more. It doesn't matter. Because I'm convinced, and I trust that he is able. No matter what he does, I trust that he is able.
But see, Timothy struggled with timidity. We know because Paul told him just a few verses before this great passage, God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but power and love and a sound mind. In fact, I don't have any of this in my notes, but I'm going to share with you for a moment, where Paul says, just listen, just listen. 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 3, I thank God whom I serve as my ancestors did with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded, Timothy, of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded now lives in you also.
His faith was sincere in God. But Paul says it's not enough for you to just believe to believe that God is able. You've got to look at your life and believe that by his strength in you, you're able. God is able. He's perfect. I'm not. I'm imperfect. I'm not. Paul says, here's where it gets tricky, Timothy. Here's where your confidence has to go beyond just trusting that God is able, because you can say that all day long. God is able. I'm going to put any responsibility on you. God is able. So I'm going to take a nap. God is able. I may as well not even come to church.
But now, if we realize that just like God is able to keep what I have entrusted to him, he expects me by his power to guard what he has entrusted to me. You've always heard in church that you can trust in God. But have you ever heard in church before today that God has entrusted you? Isn't that what it said? Right there in verse 14? Isn't that what Paul told Timothy? And if he told Timothy, what makes you any different? You've got the same spirit Timothy had, the same God Timothy had, the same gospel that Timothy believed is working in you. It was working in Lois. It was working in Eunice. It was working in Timothy. It was working in Paul.
I'm convinced that he is able. And he wouldn't have put me here if he didn't trust me to accomplish what he intends for me to accomplish. I'm not on this job by accident. I'm not raising these children by happenstance. God has given me something, and now I'm going to guard it. Your confidence is under attack. Your confidence is under attack. Not the gospel. The gospel can withstand any attack. God doesn't need you to guard the gospel. He's good. The gospel has been doing fine for a lot of years. Before the beginning of time, the gospel was getting out. It's not your job to guard the gospel, but to guard your confidence in the gospel.
It's not your job to always fix your circumstance, but to make sure that your circumstance doesn't Rob your confidence. Because if you keep your confidence in any circumstance, if you're convinced of his goodness in every storm, guess what? The gospel will work in any situation, in any trial, in any shortcoming. Protect your confidence. Protect your confidence. Protect your confidence. Not just your confidence that God is able, but your confidence that he is able to do in you what he intends to do in you by his Spirit.
I feel like this is just cutting right through a bunch of crap That has been coming into the lives of a lot of God's children. Trying to take your confidence. Trying to take your bold belief. Trying to take your will to persevere. Protect your confidence. It has great recompense of reward. Great value. Don't lose your confidence. You might lose some money. Don't lose your confidence. You might lose some people. Don't lose your confidence. You might have lost a relationship. But if you don't lose your confidence in Christ. You'll be all right.
Safety Comes from the Indwelling Spirit
One more thing I want to show you, if you have a minute. I love the Bible. I mean, I'm just amazed every time I preach it how much God knows. It's like he gets stuff. It's like he gets me, because he starts out talking about how Timothy's faith is sincere. I know you believe, but I also know that you're threatened. I know you're under attack, and I know that most of the attacks come from you. Who are you guarding your confidence from?
I want to show you one more connection, and then you can go think about it a little bit. But I want to talk about the connection between safety and strength. Safety and strength. I was so intrigued by these connections that I set out to try to discover. Was there something that happened? Because Paul and Timothy were like this. They went out on missionary journeys together, started churches together. I mean, they were close, like Starsky and Hutch. You know what I'm saying? And they went through some battles together, and they had that intimate acquaintance that people who are in the trenches together will share.
It's one thing to be in a fraternity or sorority with somebody, but when you've been in a battle with somebody, you know, that bonds you in a different way. And I just, I was thinking like, okay, Timothy is a pastor, Paul's in prison. Timothy is in Ephesus. Paul took three missionary journeys to Ephesus. Paul started the church in Ephesus. Timothy was running the church in Ephesus. So again, the Bible is really cool.
And if you go to Acts, the book of Acts, A-C-T-S, chapter 19, it tells us about the third missionary journey where Paul and Timothy were together in Ephesus. Now this is 10 years before 2 Timothy was written. But I wonder now when Paul's saying, guard the good deposit, is he reminiscing in some way about something that happened in Ephesus? So I was studying and I came across this passage, I'll read it to you and submit it for your consideration.
Paul is teaching and preaching so effectively that all the pagans in Ephesus, which is the fourth largest city in the Roman Empire. So Paul is really, really having an effect. And when you have an effect, you face attack. I already told you that, but I'm going to tell you again, because you'll think, oh, I'm under attack. This must not be working. And God will say, no, you're under attack. That means this is working. Value, vulnerability, progress means opposition.
So in Acts chapter 19, Paul is really taking ground for the kingdom of God, and a riot breaks out. Can I read you the riot scene? It's pretty exciting. Acts 19 verse 23, watch this. About that time there arose a great disturbance about the way, the way being the message of Jesus. So don't act like America is the first nation ever where people didn't like Christianity. Okay, we're under attack. I'll tell you, the gospel's in trouble. It started out in trouble. It works best in trouble. It is buoyant in trouble. It rises up and shows itself to be the only true mess in trouble.
Verse 24, let's meet Demetrius. A silversmith named Demetrius, we'll call him Michi, who made silver shrines of Artemis. Artemis is believed to be the daughter of Zeus, one of the daughters of Zeus. Factoid. Make you feel like you learned something when you came to church. Do you know Artemis? Artemis? She is fantastic. And Artemis was like this celebrity God who was responsible in many ways for protecting the people of Ephesus. And her temple was in Ephesus, so they sold little artifacts. And Demetrius was one of the fabricators of these artifacts.
And so, all of a sudden, Paul starts messing up business for Michi because people are turning to Christ, and so they stopped by in this Artemis artifact paraphernalia. And that's what the trouble was about. They didn't mind people believing in Jesus, but it was bad for business. We've got to shut this guy down. And so, verse 25, Michi called a meeting, and along with the workers in the related trades, he said, you know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus, acting like he cared about the people. He didn't care about the people. He cared about the profits. He's leading the people astray. Yeah, he's taking money out of your pocket. That's what this meeting is about.
He's convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. And he says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. There's danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited. And the goddess herself, who is worshipped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.
Because many scholars believe that a meteor fell in the place where the temple was. And so there was a legend that the image of Artemis, in fact, her name is taken from Greek, Artimaeus. Artimaeus means safe and sound. So she was called Artemis because they believed that she kept the people safe and sound. And so he's saying, our safety is up under attack. There's a threat against our safety of our money, our income, our business, our industry, as well as our city.
All right, let's continue. Verse 28. When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting, Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. And soon the whole city was in an uproar. It doesn't take long for people to turn on you. Ask Jesus. You know what I'm saying? Hosanna, Hosanna, crucify him, crucify him. The crowd is real fickle, and they'll turn on you real quick. And this is the place where Timothy is pastoring ten years later. Okay.
A riot breaks out. Soon the whole city was in an uproar. Verse 29. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus and Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. Now the theater was believed to seat about 25,000. So this is a mob scene. And so just imagine, you know, Time Warner Arena fills up. People flooding the arena, shouting about, you know, the audacity of us Christians to preach Jesus. So the voices are rising up. The arena is filling to capacity. And Paul and Timothy, who is not mentioned in this passage, but we know he was there, are right in the middle of it.
Paul wanted to appear, verse 30, before the crowd, but the disciples wouldn't let him. No, Paul, you're going to get killed. You need some secret service if you're going to go in there. We're not going to let you go down like this. Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message, begging him not to venture into the theater. The assembly was in confusion. Some were shouting, one thing, some another. Most of the people didn't even know why they were there.
The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense for the people. When they realized he was a Jew, they didn't like Jews either. So they shouted in unison for about two hours, Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. She keeps us safe and sound. Great is Artemis. Their safety and security was in their economy. Safety and security was in a God made by human hands.
The city clerk, this sounds like somebody in shorts, you know, with a name tag to us, but this is like a very important official back then, quieted the crowd and said, fellow Ephesians, doesn't all, listen, doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? Next verse. Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash.
Back to verse 35, please. None of the whole world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven. Now, I'm speculating a little bit, but I think my connection is a salient one. Isn't Paul, in some ways, kind of echoing, guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. Doesn't the whole world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis? Timothy, don't you know that you're the guardian of the church in Ephesus? Timothy, don't you know that the Spirit fell from heaven? And don't you know that God has appointed you and positioned you?
See, there's always a riot scene breaking out in your life. There's always confusion breaking out in your life. There's always voices shouting one thing and shouting another and trying to steal your confidence. Paul says, don't you know, child of God, that you're appointed as a guardian of the good deposit that is in you? But check this out. You're not in this by yourself, because you've got a Spirit who fell from heaven. Now, the city of Ephesus thought they had a God whose image fell from heaven. But you can know that you have a God whose Spirit fell from heaven. But it didn't just fall from heaven and make a temple. It fell from heaven and lives in you, because you're the temple of the Spirit of God.
Hey, Timothy, do you know how that riot broke out because the God of safe and sound was threatened? Hey, Timothy, whatever you go through, whatever you deal with, whatever opposes you, I want you to know that you're safe and sound because of the Spirit. Hey, I saw this Nike commercial the other day, and I don't know if you've seen it, but it's got a wide receiver. Yes, stay with me, Brian. You can play. I get my sermons from all different sources, because I preach a lot of them. I'm always looking for a sermon illustration. If we ever talk in a conversation, anything you say can and will be used against you in the pulpit. Holly said amen.
It's a commercial with a wide receiver named Calvin Johnson, and Diddy's in the commercial, too. It shows Calvin Johnson, you know, he's like, he's all pressured about how difficult it is to kind of like try to play football, but also all of the encumbrances of, you know, the entourage, and the fans, and the contracts, and the endorsements. And so you see him kind of worried about all this. It's his internal dialogue, and he's worried, and it's a frenzy all around him. And then you hear Diddy in the background saying, yo, Calvin, that's not your job. I'm Johnson. It's like an alter ego. See, he's like, put it on me. Put it on me. Then you flash back to Calvin. He's like, yeah, but the pressure, Diddy says, put it on me. Yeah, but the expectations put it on me. Yeah, but the media put it on me.
What's he saying? He's saying, you handle yours, and I'll handle mine. I was watching that thing, and I didn't think about Nike one bit. I thought about 2 Timothy 1.14. I did. I thought, what a great picture of what the Spirit says when we're up under attack. When we're all stuck and overwhelmed and struggling in the riot scenes of our own personal Ephesus. You know, some of you aren't called to be pastors of the church of Ephesus, but you've got pressures too. Not an NFL receiver, I understand, but there's pressures to being a student. There's pressures to work in third shift. There's pressures when you work at the bank. There's pressures to staying at home trying to raise children.
And you know what the Spirit says to all of us? Do you not know that I've appointed you to guard the deposit? Yeah, but the pressure. The Spirit says, put it on me. Yeah, but my failures. He said, put it on me. Put it on me. Put it on me. Put it on me. Yeah, but I'm overwhelmed. I got some burdens. Put it on me. Put it on me. Yeah, but my past won't leave me alone. Put it on me. Put it on me. You're not in this by yourself. You got help. Hey! Your help is on the way. Your help is here. Your help is Jesus. Your help is stronger than the hell you're going through. Come on, shout! Come on, shout! Shout! Come on, shout! Come on!