Ah But It’s Cold Outside!

Last night it snowed. We woke up to a good 4 or 5 inches of white fluff, a bit too powdery for snowmen but perfect for sledding. Of course the kids and the dog were extremely excited. It doesn’t happen often and when it does they want out.

Confession. While the idea of playing in the snow is appealing when there is no snow, the reality of snow is cold. Usually cold and wet. Sometimes cold and wet and windy. Left to myself, I might well take one look out of the window, shiver (or shudder?), and go back to bed with dreams of staying under the covers until Spring. 

But the kids really do have the right idea. They take every opportunity they get to have fun. And there are not many opportunities to have fun in the snow. So they are up and out regardless of the discomfort.

A few days ago, I read a verse in the Bible which has been bouncing around in my mind ever since. In 2 Timothy 4:2, the apostle Paul tells his right hand man Timothy to:

“Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season”.

Like Paul, Timothy had a special calling. He was set apart to be a preacher and teacher of God’s Word, the Bible.

There are ‘seasons’ in the spiritual life of an individual, a church, and a nation. There are ‘seasons’ where people have a popular interest in religion and want to learn from the Bible. There are other seasons where people show little interest, if any. There are seasons when preachers can feel a degree of success, experiencing breakthroughs as people are helped by God’s Word. There are times when being a preacher is costly, uncomfortable, and apparently fruitless. For people listening, there are times when listening to the Bible is convenient, gripping,  and exciting, and other times where it is an inconvenient, laborious, struggle.

Perhaps Paul was thinking about a farmer who will only see a crop in the harvest season, if he ploughs and sows seed when the ground is cold and hard. In a contemporary image, we might think of a business man investing in small, struggling project in order to make a big profit as it grows and succeeds. But this morning I found myself thinking about this verse while the kids were squeezing maximum fun out of every tiny piece of freezing cold H20.

I think Paul would like this image. He loved the Bible and he loved the Lord Jesus. Preaching was not exactly ‘fun’ - it led to him being arrested, beaten, and imprisoned several times - but it was one of Paul’s greatest joys in life. So he kept on doing it, squeezing every ounce of spiritual joy out of every opportunity to speak about Jesus, regardless of the parallel discomforts and costs. There was something ‘childlike’ about the joy that Paul found in telling people about Jesus - I think a similar trait is often found in many of the greatest teachers in the Christian church. He wanted Timothy and, by extension, other Christian teachers to be like that too. Don’t hear that just as a challenge because its also a thrilling encouragement.

Why did Paul find such joy in doing something so uncomfortable? Because he believed that the Bible was God’s Word. It was not a dusty, old, archaic, dead book. It was a living, energetic, dynamic message from God. The Bible was - no, the Bible is - God speaking. The fact that Christian preachers like Timothy are told to be ready to speak ‘in season and out of season’ implies that God has something to say to us in the Bible regardless of the ups and downs of our lives. When we are happy or sad, healthy or sick, enthusiastic or discouraged, in peace and war. 

In line with the rest of the Bible’s teaching, Paul is saying that it doesn’t matter whether we are living in times of great prosperity or in a global pandemic, whether churches are filled to the brim or unable to open because of national lockdowns, God has something to say to us. Christian preachers get the exciting privilege of being actively involved in delivering those messages. The flip side is that every time you hear the Bible preached is an opportunity to hear God speaking. Preachers and hearers - together - face the prospect of hearing God speak through the Bible. And that is exciting. It really is worth making the effort - even if we feel spiritually cold, drenched with discouragement, and blown about by gales of challenging circumstances.