Do not be ashamed (2 Timothy 1)

'Join with me in suffering for the Gospel.' So writes Paul, in prison, near the end of his life, to his protege Timothy. Not a really good marketing pitch, hey? It's true that following Jesus is not easy. It takes everything we have - because Jesus gave everything he has. But it is joyful, full of hope, and a life with a glorious future.  It would be easy to be ashamed or timid of the Christian gospel these days. Yet in the first chapter of his second letter to Timothy, Paul gives so many good news reasons why we need not be ashamed of the gospel or timid as followers of Jesus. This sermon was preached at Pakenham Lakeside Church on Sunday 6th October 2019.