Dr. John Goetsch: The Demas Disease

second Timothy and chapter four look at just two verses tonight second Timothy chapter 4 verse 9 Paul writes do thy diligence to come shortly unto me for demas hath forsaken me having loved this present world and is departed into Thessalonica crescens to Galatia Titus unto Dalmatia Dimas is not a popular name among expectant parents in fact I don't believe that I've ever met a person named Dimas no Christian would choose this name that is associated with disgrace and disappointment no one wants to be associated with a quitter fractured from the faith a casualty in the cause an acute problem to the Apostle Paul another number in the mortality rate in the ministry ranks while Dimas is void of Fame he does seem to have a vast following his name may be abhorred and rejected but his example seems to be admired and repeated the Dimas disease seems to elude all antibiotic no prescription can seemingly break its power well the Dimas disease thinned the ranks of the laborers trained for harvest here at West Coast Baptist College as this class makes its way across the platform now in a few hours they will join graduates around the world nearly 27-hundred all over the globe and I often wonder as they graduate will they survive the Dimas disease there are three stages that lead to a fatal stage for demas disease I believe we see it all in verse number 10 we see a disengagement from ministry the Bible says therefore demas hath forsaken me now Paul was in the ministry and Paul was very grateful to be in the ministry in fact Paul was thankful that God had placed him in such a place to serve him with his life he writes about it in first Timothy chapter 1 and verse 12 he says I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me for that he counted me faithful putting me into the ministry Paul viewed the ministry is a wonderful privilege he viewed the ministry as something very special in his life as he writes to the Colossians there in clashes 4 in verse 17 he says and say to our cheapest take heed to the ministry which thou has received of the Lord that thou fulfill it in 2nd Corinthians 5 Paul writes all things are of God who has reconciled himself to Jesus Christ and have given to us the Ministry of reconciliation understand tonight that whatever we are to do for the Lord Jesus Christ is indeed a privilege and Paul was delighted Paul was thankful Paul was humbled by the fact that God would place him in the ministry and Paul recognizes ministry as a sacred calling in 2nd Corinthians 6 and verse 3 says giving no offence in anything that the ministry be not blamed oh how we need to take seriously this matter of the ministry that some little action or perhaps a word or perhaps an a wrong reaction could put a stain or a blot upon the sacred ministry of God and I believe that Paul informs us that ministry is for life there is no retreat there is no accent there is no retirement from the ministry the Gibson calling of God are without repentance II wrote in Romans 11 and verse 29 Paul felt privileged to be in the ministry and in acts 20 and verse 24 none of these things move me neither count on my life during to myself that I might finish my course with joy and the Ministry which I've received of the Lord Jesus to testify of the gospel of the grace of God in 2nd Corinthians 4 and verse 1 therefore seen we have this ministry as we have received mercy we faint not he tells Timothy make full proof of thy ministry I'm thankful that here at West Coast Baptist College we have countless examples of people who have been faithful you've seen a bit of it tonight faithful in the ministry no doubt times when it would have been easy to disengage there were times no when there was discouragement or or difficulty that would have caused many - to do something else but I'm thankful that students at West Coast Baptist College have example after example after example of those who have stayed true to the Ministry of course it starts with our pastor and his wife 33 years in one place faithfully preaching Sunday after Sunday after Sunday after Sunday for 33 years investing in people's lives in their home in their office encouraging and counseling and mentoring and and and all of the administration and all of the things that go with any kind of ministry and I I think all of us are grateful and an honor to be in a place where we have someone as pastor who is faithful in the ministry I think of dr. Shepherd he doesn't have to be in the ministry he retired once but in his retirement years decided I want to be in the ministry I think of dr. Rasmussen and his wife dr. Shetler 40 years of ministry these are amazing people these are people that have gifts and abilities that God has blessed them with and yet they've decided I'm going to give these things to the Lord I'm going to let God use me in the ministry I think of the weavers nearly 50 years in the ministry I think a doctor mrs. Goddard married this summer 45 years serving in the ministry I think of the house over three decades here investing in our young people mentoring the next generation and the one after that and the one after that and for three decades have have given themselves to the ministry I think of dr. Lester I know some of you still think he's 18 he starts his 25th year of ministry here in this place next week I think a brother Smith who we honor tonight 25 years I think a dr. missus tenses a man literally wore out physically at the edge all invested every ounce of of what he has physically invested in ministry I think a brother mrs. Cox Larry and Amy came here as newlyweds now their kids are getting married finishing college all of those years invested right here in the ministry brother England the director of institutional effectiveness not only did we give him that title he wanted it and he embraces it and that's just a small part of what he does an amazing teacher an amazing mind doctor England the doctor brother England could do anything in this world he wanted to do anything he could have any job in America his mind is beyond comprehension he read 70 books last year not as part of his doctoral those are just these are just the ones he likes to read and he sends me a list of all 17 he grades them one to ten they're under six he says don't bother reading it and he gives me a synopsis of each book I don't have to read it I already know I got the cliff notes brother England amazing I think a brother Tom a shepherd brother Jesse Jones Willie David Adams these men are some of the most incredible young leaders I've ever been associated with I I can't even think as fast as they work they're amazing and here at the beginning of their their life so to speak in their 30s and late 20s they're investing those things those gifts that God has given them in the ministry brother Tyler the head of our music program and how that program has grown and how it's flourished under his leadership and and just the work ethic that he has and the desire for excellence you saw it tonight mrs. diversion what an amazing lady I told her when we hired her I said mrs. diversion I love watching you in the choir I love watching you teach I mean you you just you teach me with your eyes I would hate to be married to you but I you just your ability to communicate and I've sat with her this past spring with our faculty in the education department and watched her mentor our young teachers in the ministry I think a brother salt anak some of you might not know brother salt anak is well the salt anak building our our media program here in the college the salt anak recently received an award nationally given to only a hundred and seventy people in the whole world he's just starting in the ministry and yet has reached levels of achievement that are unbelievable giving his talents he could be making six figures seven figures in the talents that he has and yet has devoted it to the ministry and I think of the educators that stand day after day behind electron in a classroom week after week after week pouring their lives into our students brother first so and brother Larry Chapel and for the Randy Wells and brother wedeck and brother dr. Warren and dr. Allen and mrs. Lake and mrs. Shetler and and Peter and Danielle Mord and mrs. Whitman and mrs. Harris and mrs. Williams and mrs. Haynes and miss Gregory and miss Carter and miss Davis and miss Hawk and mrs. olden thaw and Tyler Johnson and brother Hopkins and mrs. grose and mrs. Hale and mrs. Rajaratnam I mean I could go on and on I probably missed somebody but I didn't intend to these people investing their life in the ministry and that's just the academic I think of our staff the finance department led by brother Hobbs mrs. Chapman you you will find a more consistent person in your life and mrs. Chapman I mean I think she I think she's gonna wear out the parking lot where she walks she just it's the same it's the same steps every day its faithful that office is run like corporate America mrs. Messerschmitt and Miss Hale and their team and volunteers that they have come in to help us in those busy moments of registration amazing I think of our HR department mrs. Atherton and Miss Black I think of the enrollment office under brother Jones mrs. Laster and Michael Cobbold and Bethany Paisley I think of the dean's office under dr. Chandler's leadership and mrs. Dane key our Deana women and brother Williams Reggie Williams and Josh Montana and and brother Carrie Williams and mrs. Alvarez and and then I think of miss Eyre you talk about faith you talk about somebody that just day after day after day sits behind a desk and makes that whole thing hum over there a job that most people would not desire the most people not really want trying to serve all these different people and yet faithful student activities under dr. Shetler with brother fleming and and luke Shetler and i think a christian service and brother rule and brother bundy and brother bird as they help us at enrollment times to get our students into ministries and then i think of the academic office under dr. Laster we got a bunch of rookies in there we've got four young ladies in there this year this is their first graduation I'm nervous miss long Huffer miss stoner miss Don yay mr. Panza amazing young ladies could be doing a lot of things but faithful to the ministry I think of RIT brother Francis the man we love and hate the most we love him we hate him I mean within seconds but when we hate him we realized how important he is he's just faithful many times all night fixing so we come into our office we can work in the ministry I think of our librarians mrs. salt anak Linda Parker Callie McKnight I think of our receptionist Vicky Reyes and Deanna Williams I think of student assistants offices brother Derek brother mrs. Deborah could been married 35 years faithful in the ministry but elite Johnson brothers chessani I think the bookstore one of the finest book stores anywhere brother Cox and for the bishop and a whole host of volunteers many of you spend some time out there volunteering I think a food service oh my if somebody needs to be faithful its food service miss Harvin what an amazing young lady brother Willie deal Leone Arlene Francis and Ben Morris and and many of you going out there day after day to serve meals and helping our students and encouraging them I think it's security with brother Blakely and brother Alvarez brother olden thaw I think it Denise Wells our projects manager I think of our yearbook and Aimee how I think of the scheduling office with mrs. Burton miss Gillian and and mrs. Patrick and and mrs. Rasmus and I think of our sports program with brother Beeson and Christi Kelly and and brother Sisson I think at Tyler Johnson who assists pastor with college development I think of Nicole Harbison who serves as pastors college secretary and I think of Tim Bundy who who is brother Shetler administrative assistant and I think of semana Soto who puts up with dr. R every day as his assistant and there's a lady sitting over here Kerry Schmid who's made me look good for 15 years these are faithful people you go ahead and point to the few who've done something else you go ahead and point to the few graduates that have defected and I'll point to a whole host of people that have served as faithful examples to the 2,700 that are out there serving the Lord in ministry they have fought the demas disease they could have defected they could have disengaged they could have disgraced may I say to you whether I gave your name or I forgot it well done good and faithful servant demas has forsaken me a disengagement for ministry and I see secondly a dangerous mingling you see the Dimas disease doesn't start with a departure from ministry it starts with a dangerous mingling in verse 10 demas has forsaken me having loved this present world the capacity to love is a gift from God all of us have a capacity to love God has placed that within the human heart he's put it within the DNA of a human being we all have the capacity to love but what we love is our choice God presents himself as the single and supreme choice of our love in fact he commands us now shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind and with all thy strength now the world presents a whole smorgasbord of choices as to what we could love we can fall in love with ourselves men shall be lovers of their own selves we can fall in love with sin love not the world neither the things that are in the world we can fall in love with stuff but take heed beware of covetousness for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things that he possesses we can fall in love with success but he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord for not either commendeth himself is approved but whom the Lord commends we can fall in love with sleep most of our students have but you know we can fall in love with ease and comfort god says love not sleep less thy poverty come to thee now we don't know which entre Dimas chose from this smorgasbord of the world but it doesn't really matter it took him out of the ministry the devil no doubt will offer the class of 2019 some choices with respect to what they love you can perform without love but you can't please without love and you'll never persevere without love the Church of Ephesus was a wonderful Church a church that had a great record a church that had some great history for the Lord but the Lord had to say to them in the book of Revelation chapter 2 thou has left thy first love you see no one lasts in the ministry with a lost love demas have forsaken me a disengagement from the ministry but it started with a dangerous mingling with some aspect of the world and we see finally tonight a devastating mistake in verse 10 demas hath forsaken me having loved this present world having loved this present world the presence and the permanent are two different things now oftentimes we don't like something in the present I'm sure that every person I named a moment ago who serves here in the ministry have had days where something was not real attractive in the present it might have been part of their job description it might have been someone they were trying to help it it might have been a task that needed to be completed there are things in the ministry in the present that sometimes we dislike or what we'd rather not deal with and often what happens is when we don't like what's in the present we look for something else in the present and we go from present things to present things and all that is here in this world is the present and it's all temporal we don't like the present and so we look for something else in the present and we go from job to job and ministry to ministry or thing to thing or whatever it is and we never find fulfillment why because we've made a dangerous mistake because all that's present is temporary when demas fell in love with the present world he got his eyes off of the permanent he got his eyes off of that which is lasting and you won't make it class of 2019 you won't make it church member you won't make it in ministry if you're going to go from the present to another present to another present to another present the ministry depends on our eyes being upon the eternal we hear so much about plans we got plans for today we got plans for night we got plans for tomorrow we got a one-year plan we got a five-year plan we got a right retirement plan we got a savings plan we got a career plan does anybody have an eternal plan if you then be risen with Christ seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God set your affection on things above not on the things of the earth for your dead and your life is hid with Christ in God when Christ who is our life shall appear then shall you also appear with him in glory if you're gonna make it in the ministry if you're gonna stay in the ministry if you're not going to depart from the ministry you got to get your mind off this present world and you've got to get it on the world to come that which is permanent the day of the Lord shall come as a thief in the night and the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat the earth also and the works therein shall be burned up years ago I was traveling in evangelism and held a meeting for a man named Reuben Ezra Kyle his name scared me half to death dr. Kyle was a short man rather stocky had snow-white hair hid a large face and when he talked his jowls kind of jiggled he had a very deep voice he sounded like God to me his wife had been a Catholic nun and she got saved and they married and never had any children God put them in the ministry dr. Kyle was a man of very few words I remember going soul-winning with him every day as we'd be in those meetings and we'd ride in the car sometimes for an hour without him saying a word but when he spoke you wanted to be sure to hear everything he said one day we were in that car and we're just driving along and I don't know what prompted it but he kind of half turned toward me and he said John my wife and I decided a long time ago we weren't going to live for the ashtray that's all he said I didn't say oh I didn't say what do you mean by that I knew exactly what he meant and I don't know why I said it maybe he saw a tinge of materialism in me maybe he saw my focus getting off of the things that were permanent I don't know but I'm thankful he said it I'm not going to live for the ashtray what do you meant is everything here is one day going to be burned up it's all gonna be ashes your career your bank account your house your car it's all gone it's all the present worlds and seeing then Peter goes on to say that all these things shall be dissolved what manner of persons ought you to be you know a holy conversation and godliness looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of the Lord in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent Heat nevertheless we according to his promise look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness wherefore my beloved brethren be diligent that he may be found in him without spot in peace and blameless listen Dimas was attracted to the world because it offered happiness and it offered health perhaps it offered wisdom it offered riches but God is offering you peace without spot and blameless [Music] there's a lot of places on the road of ministry where you can exit but exit to what may be better question exit from what in John 6 verse 66 from that time any from that time on many of his disciples walked no more with him and Jesus looked at the twelve and he said will you also go away I'm sure when Pastor Chapel looks at our list of alumni he sees some that have the Dimas disease and he would say to this class of 2019 and he would class aide to the junior class and the sophomore class in the freshman class and the one year bible will you also go away [Music] I'm thankful Peter said to whom shall we go thou has the words of eternal life friend there's a lot of there's a lot of exits there's a lot of things in this present world you can do where are you going there's only one worth serving there's only one thing worth doing with your life and that's living for the permanent living for that which is eternal thank God for West Coast Baptist College training Labor's to go into the ministry of the harvest will you join the ranks

Channel: Lancaster Baptist Church

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Keywords: lancaster baptist church, lancaster baptist, baptist church, paul, chappell, paul chappell, pastor paul chappell, 2 Timothy 4, Dr. John Goetsch, faithfulness

Id: 6Bm9HpWYbPw

Length: 32min 43sec (1963 seconds)

Published: Mon May 06 2019