“ARE YOU CONTAGIOUS?”

II TIMOTHY 1:1-14

2 Tim 1:1  Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,

2  To Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

3  I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.

4  Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy.

5  I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

6  For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

7  For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

8  So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God,

9  who has saved us and called us to a holy life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

10  but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

11  And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.

12  That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

13  What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.

14  Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you--guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

What do you do when someone is contagious?  If you’re like most people you keep your distance.  If you’re like most people you do your best to stay away from all of those nasty germs.  A wife learned that lesson by watching her husband.  After they had been married twenty years she made the following observation. 

If you get sick shortly after you get married you can expect your husband to be very sympathetic.  In fact, you’ll probably hear something like this:

“Sweetheart, I don’t like the sound of that cough.  I want you to go to bed right now and get some rest and don’t worry about supper.  I’ll fix something and bring it in to you.”

Wait ten years and you’ll probably hear something like this:

“You don’t look so hot.  So, why don’t you be sensible?  After you feed the kids and give them their baths, finish up the dishes and the laundry why don’t you try and take it easy?” 

Wait ten more years and you’ll probably hear something like this:  

“Will you stop all that sneezing?  What are you trying to do give me pneumonia?  And by the way why don’t you garble or something instead of just sitting there all evening and barking like a seal!”

When was the last time you were contagious?  Actually, I hope you’re contagious right now.  Of course, I’m not talking about being contagious in a way that spreads your germs.  I’m talking about being contagious in a way that spreads your faith.   That’s something that the Apostle Paul focused on in the letter that he wrote to his good friend Timothy. 

Take a close look at the opening words to that letter and you’ll see that Lois was contagious.  Eunice was contagious and Paul was very contagious himself.  They were contagious because they all shared their faith with Timothy.  Timothy got his faith from his grandmother Lois, his mother Eunice and his good friend Paul and now Paul wanted Timothy to be contagious himself.  Paul wanted Timothy to share his faith with others.  Paul told Timothy not to be ashamed or timid when it came to sharing his faith.

That’s good advice for us today.  Don’t be ashamed or timid when it comes to sharing your faith. Why is it good advice for us today?  It’s good advice because we live in a country that professes to be religious but in many ways is apathetic or down right hostile when it comes to people who are religious.

Two years ago Ben Stein delivered a provocative and thought provoking commentary on the CBS Sunday Morning show.  Ben Stein was a speech writer many years ago for Richard Nixon.  Most people today know him as an actor who, for a few years, also hosted his own television game show.  Ben Stein’s commentary aired two days before Christmas back in 2005 and this is what he said in his commentary,

“I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish.  And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees.  I don’t feel threatened.  I don’t feel discriminated against.  That’s what they are: Christmas trees.

“It doesn’t bother me a bit when people say, “Merry Christmas” to me.  I don’t think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto.  In fact, I kind of like it.  It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating a happy time of year.  It doesn’t bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu.  If people want a crèche, it’s just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.  I don’t like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don’t think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians.  I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period.”

I think the Apostle Paul would respond to that commentary with a rousing and resounding “Amen.”  I think the Apostle Paul would also say that’s one of the reasons why you and I need to be contagious.  You and I need to be contagious so that we can make some changes in this country.  You and I need to be contagious so we can make his country the way God wants it to be; a country where there really is less discrimination and more justice for all; a country where people hunger and thirst for righteousness.

The other reason why we need to be contagious can be seen by looking at a homework assignment that a third grade teacher gave to her class one day.  The homework assignment consisted of a series of incomplete proverbs.  The children had to complete the proverbs by filling in the blank at the end of the proverb.  One little girl was doing just fine with the homework assignment until she came to the proverb that starts with the words, “Laugh and the world laughs with you…”  She thought about it for a minute or so and then completed the proverbs so it read as follows:  “Laugh and the world laughs with you.  Cry and it won’t be long before someone yells ‘Shut up!’”

These days that’s what you get more often than not.  People today are quick to criticize; quick to condemn; quick to complain.  The result is a lot of people who are depressed or discouraged or distraught for one reason or another.  A faith that is contagious doesn’t tell someone who feels that way to “Shut up.”  A faith that is contagious sits down with a person who’s feeling that way and asks, “What’s wrong?”

The Apostle Paul wants you and me to be contagious not only to help change the country that we live in but to also help change people’s lives. 

A faith that is contagious helps people who have no hope to know the Jesus who said, “I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly.”  A faith that is contagious helps people who have very little love in their lives to know the Jesus who said, “No longer do I call you my servants but I call you my friends….greater love hath no man than this; that he lay down his life for his friends.”  A faith that is contagious helps people who are stressed out for one reason or another to know the Jesus who said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.  Let not your hearts be troubled; neither let them be afraid.”

A faith that is contagious also helps people to see that they were created in God’s image and that they are precious in God’s eyes.  It helps them to see the good in themselves and the good in others.  It is said that the great artist Michelangelo was working on a sculpture one day when he was approached by a child.  The child watched him with fascination as he chipped away at a large block of white marble.  Finally, the little girl’s curiosity got the best of her and asked him a question.  “What are you doing?” Michelangelo smiled and replied, “There’s an angel in here and I must set it free.”

A faith that is contagious wants to help change the world that we live in for the better.  It also wants to help change people’s lives for the better.  It wants to spread the hope and the peace and the love of Christ that sets free the angel that is in every single person.

So, I’ll ask the question again.  Are you contagious?  I certainly hope so.  Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

October 7, 2007