At the very end of his life on earth, the apostle Paul solemnly commanded his disciple Timothy,
“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” (2 Ti 4:1–5)
He said this in full view of his own impending execution and of the moral climate of the world as it neared the end. This is my charge as well; perhaps yours, too.
Nothing has really changed for us today—the mission has nor changed: preach the Good News (and it is exceedingly good), hold onto truth, give much grace and save souls. And your Passport is the same, too—have you looked at the cover lately? It has “Kingdom of the Most High God” stamped on it. Oh, and you are his kid.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (Paul, in his second letter to the church in Corinth, 2 Cor. 4:16-18)
The world awaits.
Go.
Jay McCarl 