A Sermon for Christian Ministry Leaders
on the Assigned Text of 2 Timothy 2:14–26
Three Kinds of People
- Positives do gospel things in gospel ways for gospel reasons, bringing health, working for good, and being a blessing because they want the gospel to win. Few people are positives, and remaining one is difficult because it requires dealing with even negative people and negative situations in positive ways.
- Negatives do ungospel things in ungospel ways for ungospel reasons, bringing sickness, division, and trouble because they want to win. Sadly, although negatives are not usually the majority, they are often vocal, determined, and well-networked, and therefore, as Charles Spurgeon said, much like bees who swarm into a painful threat.
- Neutrals are unsure, confused, fearful, and caught in the middle. They need to be cared for by a positive shepherd or they will turn into negatives. Most people are neutrals and are swayed by the friends they keep, leaders they follow, and information they believe, and they need to grow in discernment and pursue wise friends.
Twenty Kinds of Negatives
- Success Jealousy Negatives
- False Witness Negatives
- Misinformed Negatives
- Personal Dislike Negatives
- Take-Up-Offense-for-Another-Person Negatives
- Missiological Negatives
- Single-Issue Voter Negatives
- Little World Negatives
- Chain of Command Negatives
- Tradition Negatives
- Unforgiving Negatives
- Plank-Speck Negatives
- Diotrephes Negatives (3 John 9)
- Distrust Negatives
- Control Negatives
- Critic Negatives
- Warrior Negatives
- One-Handed Negatives
- Gossip Negatives
- Theological Negatives
Responding NOT Reacting
Because God is both sovereign and good, he can and does use even the negatives for positive purposes. Perhaps the most classic example of this is Joseph’s positive declaration to his negative brothers in Genesis 50:20, saying, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”
In 2 Timothy 2:14–26, Timothy is dealing with the following:
Negatives
- Hymenaus and Alexander were the chief negatives.
- Other varying kinds and degrees of unnamed negatives are also involved.
Neutrals
- Many people were neutrals, as the negatives were “upsetting the faith of some” (2 Tim. 2:18).
Positives
- Paul is the positive speaking into Timothy’s life and ministry, seeking to help him stay positive and not go negative, lest the neutrals only have negatives to influence them and the entire ministry becomes negative and toxic.
